No More Secrets
by fibita
Summary: Everyone is SHIELD is hiding something. Timebomb? You can say that again.
1. Chapter 1: Bruce

**Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to the Avengers or any of the characters (except Penny).**

**Btw, I'd really love to hear what you gotta say about this story!**

* * *

**Chapter 1: Bruce**

Penny was eating at the science floor cafeteria, making doodles in her notebook. Bruce said hi and she moved her dish a bit to the right to make some room for him. It was an unspoken rule of comradeship between them.

She became a regular in that floor around a year back, after the "Incident" in New York. She was the first in the mornings and the last to leave. Some days, he was sure she had some small bunk somewhere with her name on it. It was puzzling to see someone so young so motivated in their line of work.

"What are we working on today?" he adjusted his glasses. She smiled, looked tired and sighed. "Same as always... I'm stuck. I figured out most of the formula and I'm pretty sure I'm missing a chunk. I mean, something is clearly missing and I can't sort it out". She got some noodles and cheese and chewed slowly.

"Want me to check it out? I may see something in it" She passed on her notebook and kept her friendly expression "Wanna try some? I made extra just in case you wanted to try'em out". He snorted, grabbed a few noodles with his fork and made a yummy gesture. She giggled "Do you ever sleep Penny?"

"Sleep? Very unproductive. I have to make this work. Fast." Her expression and tone changed, she seemed worried. "Pen, you need some rest. When was the last time you slept in your own bed?"

She cleared her throat. "Monday. I think." He thought it best to leave it at that. "Today is Friday Penny. This formula is... different." He was on to her, damn it.

"I wouldn't say "different" it's a different approach, that's all". He went through the first page, it had some subject statistics. "So, you recreated this numbers with Jarvis' mainframe?" She took the notebook from him in a non-subtle way. "No, I mean, Dr. Erskine didn't have Jarvis and pulled this off in the forties. We don't need a computer, we need a brain."

"Well, that's why you're on it Dr. Morse." Fury's voice was harsh and unfriendly. Bruce resumed his lunch in his own plate. "Director Fury". He stood still right in front of her. She frowned and gave him her notebook with the statistics. "Not improving?"

Her concerned look came back "Nope. But I'm almost there. I know I am." Bruce thought seeing Fury showing some sort of emotion in his face, only lasting a second. Maybe his eyes were failing him. Fury gave her back her notes "You have until the end of the month." "That's two weeks from now! Why do you put her a deadline?"

She took her notebook back while getting up and left the noodles for Bruce, ignoring his attempts of getting her off the hook "I'll go on right away."

Bruce rushed up and grabbed her by the arm "No, Pen, you need to get some food and rest." Both Fury and Penny were startled at Bruce's sudden rush. "She hadn't been to her home in 4 days. Whatever you need this formula for, it can wait. Now eat."

"No, it can't. I need to work it out!" Heighten your voice to a potential Hulk: bad idea.

"You need to finish your lunch. NOW!" His brown eyes had a slim line of green around. Fury placed his hand on top of his gun. "Bruce, you don't scare me, c'mon." Still, she grabbed her fork and sat down.

She looked at Fury, who wasn't entirely convinced that Bruce was being himself. "I'll go on once I'm done eating. And I'll keep working at home" Fury cleared his throat "That's confidential information." Without looking up she said "Did that line ever work with Stark?" Bruce snorted yet again and swallowed water. "You're not Iron man Dr. Morse." She looked up defiantly "Nope, but you need me to figure this one out."

Sleep deprived Penny was as moody as Stark, he realized he had experience in this mediation area after all. "Hey, why don't we all calm down a bit? Fury, we all take work home. Give her the night off, she hadn't slept much." Fury raised his eyebrow "Dr. Banner" Bruce's eyes were still slightly green, Fury knew better than upsetting him.

Suddenly he was losing the high intimidating ground with all the members of his team.

He placed his fists on the table and lowered his face to her level "This agency invested a lot of time and effort on you Dr. Morse. You have two weeks. After that, we pull the plug on this project." She dropped the fork, she wasn't hungry anymore. "Understood sir."

He took off without checking Bruce's eyes again. She took a deep breath in order to keep her quickly reddening teary eyes. He grabbed her hand "What's all this about Penny? You can tell me."

She gave his hand a quick squeeze. "Thanks Bruce, but I can't". She took a deep breath and stared at her noodles "Maybe I should go hit something."

"That always worked for me."


	2. Chapter 2: Steve

**I'd really love to hear what you gotta say about this story and what you think about the characters!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to the Avengers or any of the characters.**

* * *

**Chapter 2: Steve**

Dim light was coming through the training room. _Pang. Pang. Pang._  
Frustrated, locked-up, packed with work that wasn't getting anywhere. _Pang. Pang. Pang._

He was a lab rat. And the knock on the door meant one of his many many blood sucking white cloaked sentries was coming to check on him. Confined to the premises for_ "his own good". _  
_  
"Sudden exposure to the historical events since your "incident" could be harmful to your psyche." _He felt like a little boy who's dog had died and his parents were trying to spare him. _Pang. Pang. Pang. _

He didn't even turn to see who it was. "Can I have a go at it?" He held the punching bag with a resemblance of a smile on his lips. "Sure, but can you handle it?"

She snorted playing offended "Don't let my size fool you. I had Romanoff training, ok?" He made a gesture with his hands "All yours then miss."

She stared at him in disbelief "You don't think I can do it!" he giggled "I'm sure you can" he started laughing at her posture against the bag. "I could take you down when you least expect it you know."

He came closer to her to help her with posture and she took the opportunity to grab him by his arm, lock her feet on his knee and knock him down, cutting off his air with her free fist. "See? Oh, sorry"

She got up and extended her hand to help him up. He grabbed her and knocked her down "Now we're even." She raised her eyebrow "Oh really? Hell we are!" She rushed off from under him and got a couple of batons from the training area.

"What's got in to you today?" he was rather puzzled but liked this playful version of her. They started sparring while they kept having the conversation "Well, first Bruce didn't really like my noodles recipe" defused a direct attack from Steve. "I see" now he defused her attack and she's with her back on the floor. Right hook to his rib cage. Small ouch "You're quite a pussy for such a big guy you know?" He smiled at her and the game got speed up a notch, his advances were rougher and so were hers, though he couldn't get close to her once she got a hand of _a bō_.

However, he was enhanced to the peak of human ability after all. She ended up disarmed, face down and slightly bruised. He leaned forcing her arm behind her back in a rather painful way, but she wouldn't whine about it, not to him anyway. "You gotta admit, this is much more fun than poking needles at me, isn't it?"

He had a point. "So, what else happened in your day?" he threw a towel to her face and she whipped him in the chest with it. "Jerk" they half giggled at their dynamic "Fury gave me a deadline I can't reach unless a miracle happens and I just had to channel my frustration somehow." He checked her bruised arm and went to get ice. "Well, you came to the right room for that."

She grabbed the second towel he offered, this time with ice on it and put it on her arm. She thanked him with a gesture while sitting down, backs to the wall. "How was your day? Poor punching bag had a tough one."

He sighed and started hitting the back of his head against the wall "I'm going crazy here. I get is for my own good but-" "but it's bullshit, I know." He stopped for a second and saw her. Something was definitely wrong with her today. She never questioned these decisions before.

He kept on hitting the wall with the back of his head. "As your primary physician I'm obliged to make you stop that but" she started hitting her own head but stopped quickly after getting dizzy. She had to go back to her desk and keep working on the formula, but she couldn't find the strength to move. Steve was her friend and she was there not to blow off steam but to get him to run yet-one-more endless test. She didn't want him to feel like a freak in a cage, and certainly didn't want to be the one keeping him there. She took a deep breath. "I need to go for check-up later, right?"

She gave back the towel and put it in his face, his left cheek and upper lip seemed swollen. "I'm sorry Rogers." They got up "Hey, not every day a pretty doctor takes me down so." She looked puzzled. "Nice doctor. It's that, erm, you're not like the others. Doctor-y and all. You're sweet. You treat me like a person."

She grabbed her notebook and restrained a smile "You ARE a person, in spite of that thing they put in your system and made you all kick ass-y and tall."

He snorted "You mean that thing you're trying to synthesize again?" She looked right into his eyes and held her breath. "Yeah, well, see you later Capt."


	3. Chapter 3: Clint

**I'd really love to hear what you gotta say about this story and what you think about the characters!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to the Avengers or any of the characters. **

**Hello, Clint's arms anyone?**

* * *

**Chapter 3: Clint**

She checked the time in her big wristwatch: 8:30 pm. "So long for an early dinner and warm bath."  
"You do need to stop talking to yourself darling" she turned around with a tired smile on her face. "Hey you."

He came closer to her and checked her watch, holding on to her arm and caressing her skin slowly. "Look at the time, I heard you need a ride home." She raised her eyebrow "Bruce was worried about you, asked me to come over since we are... old friends? Is that what we're going for these days?"

She chuckled and nodded. "Bad day huh?" She nodded again, her teary eyes crawling again. "A year today" he caressed her face slowly. She cleared her throat "Yes, well, I have to finish running these-" he shut down the PC without caring about her many curses. He placed his index finger over his lips and made her hush.

"This is what we are going to do. I'm going to help you pack all the thingies you need, but firstly you're gonna take that ancient Bluetooth out of your ear, place it in your pocket and then, quietly, you're going to allow me to hug you. For as long as I think you need to. Is that understood?"

She nodded and took off the earpiece, placing it in her pocket, then let herself be hugged and hugged him back. "You are entitled to let go and cry Nell, it's ok." but she couldn't, and she couldn't make him bare with her issues, not anymore. They were friends now, nothing more.

Nothing less either. "I know what you're thinking. Screw that Nell, you need to let someone in, c'mon." She took a deep breath and dried her few tears "I know, I know. Thanks but I have to finish this. I can't screw this up."

Clint was started to get upset, but wasn't letting go of her grasp "You need to rest Penn! You can't keep at it like this. Yes, I heard, he gave you a deadline, he'll pull the plug, what the hell is that supposed to mean? He won't suspend you, he already cut you off from active duty."

"He can kick me out of here and what would I do then? You know this is my home." He came closer to her again "You could live again, you could go to London or China again, you liked it there."

"I was running from you Clint, I don't need to do that anymore." That hit close to home, he let go of her arms. "Look Penn, I- I know things are weird. They never stopped being weird between us." She cleared her throat "Things aren't weird Clint. We're friends now, we work together. We are different people. I'm not like this because of you and Natasha, c'mon, give me some credit."

"There's no me and Natasha." She chuckled "Sure, there're no weapons of mass destruction in this building either. Sod off Clint!" She turned around and put her Bluetooth back in her ear. "So it doesn't bother you."

She turned around and changed her tone to a playful beat "So there is something between you two! I should've accepted Stark's bet." Clint looked baffled. "Kidding. Look, in the event of something happening between you and agent Romanoff, in spite of what you or her may think, I'd be happy. If someone deserves to be happy is you Clint. And if she makes you happy, then I'm happy for you."

"And when do you get to be happy?"

"Once I'm done with this formula I'll dedicate myself to find the perfect dark looking geek that'll make me happy for the rest of my short span of SHIELD agent life, happy?" he touched her chin "Deal then". They hugged one more time and he kissed her hair slowly.

"So, you ready to leave? I need to get the car ready." She wanted to thank him for trying to get her away from this, but it was her duty. "Look Clint, thanks, but I need to finish this. And I don't think I wanna risk Romanoff getting mad at me cos you gave me a ride home."

"I can give you a ride home if you'd like." Captain Rogers came into the room and was rather puzzled at what he found. "What? He let you out?" She was suddenly smiling again "Only if supervised by someone from the team. And if I avoid newstands, TVs, internet and anything not previously agreed upon with some liaison agent they hadn't determined yet. And I need to come back before midnight. Cinderella clause I call it."

"And you came directly to your doctor? How about that Captain huh?" Clint's tone was amused and territorial at the same time. "Well, no, I'm here because Dr. Morse had to run some tests."  
"After 8?"  
"I figured she'd be here."  
"What are you? My father now?" "No, I'm your- best friend. I'm looking after your best interest Penn."  
She cleared her throat "I'll be sure to tell that to Romanoff the next time she gives me a kill stare."

Captain Rogers held his smirk. "Bruce and I are going to get some ribs - to go of course, closed places don't work well with him. You can both go with us if you'd like."

She sighed "I'm a bit tired." Clint crossed his arms in front of his chest and gave her a bossy look. "But I'll go, sure. I'll go. I need to see outside of these office." Both Clint and Steve smiled pleased with themselves.

"Are you coming Agent Barton?" Clint looked at Rogers' face as he said that. Ponder for a little while. "Nah, you got this one covered Capt."

"That's right, he has a red haired to catch." she threw a paperclip at his face and giggled. He went closer to her and faked a childish tickle attack "I do not!" she pushed him away "You go away big goof! Off you go now, I need to check up Capt. Rogers - I mean, check up his vitals. Captain, this way." She turned around quickly to avoid her blush to be seen.

She knew she'd never see the end of that mock, Clint wouldn't let it go. But it worked; Bruce had her all figured out apparently.


	4. Chapter 4: Brandon

**I hope you like how this is going :)  
My Steveish is a bit rusty but there's only so much I can work with here, not much of him was included in the Avengers.**

**Also, Jarvis must get lonely...**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to the Avengers or any of the characters.**

* * *

**Chapter 4: Brandon**

"All your vitals are OK" he looked bored while putting back his shirt. She was slightly bored as well, he never had a fever, a cold. The most he ever had were a few cuts and bruises and a broken arm, that healed in 2 weeks, leaving no scars in the bone. She asked if he was feeling OK, "Physically I mean."

"Well, my rib cage hurts a bit. But I guess I'm a bit of a girl for someone my size" she smiled and took the blood flasks to the sample reader. She leaned a bit on it, her 4 days of sleeping in the office couch were finally taking a toll.

She checked the time in her big silvery watch. "It's almost 10, I'm sorry Cap." He came closer to her and pat her on her back, but then left his hand there and kept stroking her back slowly. "I still have 2 hours, it's OK."

The familiarity of the gesture surprised them both. "Having a tough day still?" She touched her wristwatch. "Kinda." Still kept looking at the samples, as if by looking at them they'd get processed more quickly.

"Bran, once the results are done send them to my pad, ok?" She clicked her Bluetooth and took it off her ear. Rogers' puzzled looked requested some sort of explanation. "You know Jarvis? Well, it's not the only one of its kind. Bran, this is Captain Rogers."

A voice coming from some unseen speakers greeted him with a male British accent that sounded around his thirties. "Hello Captain, is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." Steve was puzzled and amused at the same time "So you took Jarvis from Stark and adjusted it?"

She blew him off with a gesture. Brandon decided to talk instead, while she was packing her pad and some paper notebooks on her colorful bag. "Doctor Morse went to college with my creator, Phillip Stan. They are best of friends and I'm a prototype. When Dr. Stan was hired by SHIELD, they both decided to leave me in Dr. Morse's care since she had been helpful to him in getting this job. He then designed many security and AI devices for SHIELD. The AI Jarvis has a different design, but we are well acquainted as well. It is very exciting to talk to someone other than Dr. Morse."

"I resent that comment Brandon." She opened the little fridge and went through the stocked samples. "My apologies Dr. Penelope, I didn't mean to upset you."

"Penelope?" she breathed heavily "And now is when you stop giving embarrassing details about me Brandon."

"Okay! So, I can't tell Stark you have a toy just like his, can't I?" she sneered "Hell no. Brandon is my sidekick and I'd like to keep it that way, that's why I have the Bluetooth, so I can talk and listen to him without anyone realizing he's here. I mean, he's here but he won't make himself visible except I introduce him to someone."

"Does Bruce know?" She hung her bag across her torso and picked some keys from her desk. "Nope, and Clint neither." they shared a grin "Yeah, it was the next question."

"Anything else you wanna ask?" He had a very honest smile. "Not right now." She smiled back "I need to check something in the substation before leaving. Wanna talk to Bruce to see if he's still around?" She handed over her cellphone. "I don't think I-"

"Oh God no! Let's call the feds! Captain Rogers has a device with internet access in his hand! C'mon Rogers, just dial him, let's go." They headed to the elevator and met with Bruce at the 8th floor. Then they agreed on waiting for her at the entrance of -3, since they didn't have clearance.

She went through the door and turned around to see them. She smiled and saw how the door was shut behind her. Those two were her favorite people from the last year, no doubt about that.

She came to another door, passed her badge and after a low beep it was wide opened.

The owner of her wristwatch was on a bed, hooked up to several machines. His heartbeat was normal, his brain seemed to be functioning, his levels decreasing slightly, but still steady. He just needed to wake up and breathe on his own. She did what she had done every Friday for the last year: opened her purse, take out Steve's blood sample and inject it on his arm.

She waited for 5 minutes and checked the stats again: his levels were normal. She sat on his bed and grabbed his hand "Hello Mr, I'm really close to figuring this out, I've promised I'll get you out of this and I will, just hang in there a tinsy bitsy longer ok?" She held her tears and could hear his voice in her head. "These are happy tears cos I know you'll be up there in no time, dealing with Stark and the rest, even though you should retire for your own good. You're not getting any younger you know." She kissed him on the forehead and dried her tears.  
"Ok, I have to go now. Bruce and Rogers are waiting. We're having dinner out tonight, it's weird. Good weird."

She turned around closing the door behind her and failed to see how his hand tried to seize hers.


	5. Chapter 5: Dr Ross

**I'm gonna get to my point, just bare with me a tinsy bitsy longer. Would love to hear what you think!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to the Avengers or any of the characters.**

* * *

**Chapter 5: Dr. Ross**

Bruce also had a Cinderella clause, and was slightly terrified of going to downtown in the city that has the highest aggression rate in the country. Still, he was sure it'd help him loosen up a bit, test his focus.

Also, Tony was away and the closest thing to his science buddy was Penny, and she definitely needed some time out. And there was the Captain, who was about to develop a disorder if he couldn't leave the facilities.

He felt like the designated driver all of the sudden, which was funny if you think of it, and good. These two people trusted him with their lives (and the rest of the city's). Steve wasn't in Capt America character and there was no way Penny could remotely stop him if the _other guy_ decided to took over him and bring havoc.

While waiting for her to come out of the restricted section, he kept a steady loud breathing "Are you OK Banner?" Poor Captain always worried about everyone else. "Yes, yes, just hadn't been out in a while. I wonder what she's doing there." They looked through the round glass window in the door. She was standing really closed to a locked door, hitting her head slowly and repeatedly. Steve knew the feeling all too well. Then she dried tears and came back to the door "Whatever it is, means a lot to her."

"You think her boyfriend is there?" Steve hadn't thought about that approach. But it'd make sense. However… "I don't think she is with someone. I had the feeling she was interested in you" Bruce denied it with shaking his head "Nah, we're just working together." Steve remembered what she said to Clint earlier "She mentioned liking dark-looking nerds, that sounds like you Banner." Bruce laughed "Not happening in a million years Steve. We're working on her new formula, that's all."

He looked puzzled "New one? Not Dr. Erskine's? Why does she get my blood samples every week then?" Bruce frowned "It's a different version of your formula. Either way, I think the samples are standard procedure, because she gets mine too. Don't think Natasha's or Clint's though." She opened the door and asked what she missed.

"Are you alright Doc?" she sighed. "Yeah, patient is not well, that's all. So, where you guys wanna go?" They talked about different restaurants where to get food from and they decided on one near the ferry station, less people than downtown. "Want me to drive Bruce?" He gave her the keys without hesitation. "Good call." She smiled.

It was a standard-issued SHIELD vehicle, grey, boring to anyone on the street. However, it was filled with weaponry and bullet proof. Not Hulk-proof but it was as good as they'd get. She went to the driver's seat and Bruce sat on the passenger's one, leaving Steve on the backseat. He wasn't familiar with the concept of "Third wheeling" but after 5 minutes, he feared he was intruding.

Bruce and Penny locked up conversation on formulas and science talk until she saw him on the rear-view mirror. "Sorry Cap, what do you wanna see? We still have 1.5 hs to get back so." His eyes shined at the thought "I don't know, but I think we should avoid downtown, too many angry people there." He pat Bruce on his back and they avoided big avenues.

"So, what do you guys think of Spider man?" Steve looked confused. "Hadn't heard much of him. He stopped a giant lizard guy from turning the city into an army of reptiles. I guess it must count for something." He paused for a second "I can't believe we did nothing about it." She sneered "Well, Fury wouldn't want to call attention onto the Avengers after last year I guess."

She saw Steve's frustration in his eyes and decided to enlighten him "A kid dressed up with a spandex suit calls himself Spiderman. He seems to have some sort of mutation. A lot of those lately... Anyhow, he's not using it for bad things, he's like a _vigilante_."

"And what do you think about him Penny?" Bruce already guessed the answer but he wanted to hear it from her "I think he's smart, a bit of a wild card. I'm sure Coulson wouldn't have wanted him to join you guys." There was a short silence in the car. "But you disagree."

She grinned "I think that with the right motivation, in time he'd make a great Avenger."

They reached a small family restaurant and ordered the ribs to go. The place was nice and they seemed to know Penny. She was apparently polite and smiled a lot outside of the office. "Here you go sweety, extra barbecue sauce." She grabbed the food bags and handed them over Steve "You're spoiling me Mirna, thanks and have a good weekend."

She drove them near the Pier 17, to a small clearance that wasn't too jam-packed. They sat on the hood of the car, it was a bit crowded but sitting between them she wasn't chilly anymore. After a few jokes and Steve stories about how this looked back in the day, Bruce mentioned this little restaurant he used to hang out in all the time with Betty.

"You miss her, don't you?" He nodded "But it's not safe for her so." Steve suddenly felt bad for him. "When was the last time to talked to her?" It had been a really long time and remembering her was painful.

"Have you thought of telling Fury to hire her? I mean, she's a smart cookie, I'm sure SHIELD can replicate whatever she has on her research offices..." Bruce got off the hood and started pacing in front of them. Steve and Penny shared a concerned look while she kept on chewing a particularly barbecue-sauced rib.

"I want to let her go. She deserves to have a normal life, away from all this." Penny cleared her throat "But what if she doesn't want to? I'm pretty sure she loves you Bruce, and I don't think she's given up on you." He looked up to them, Penny had moved closer to Steve because of the cold. "She was with someone when I showed up in her life again, she could've moved on and be happy."

"Dude, she chose to run away with you, I think that's a pretty clear sign about her feelings for you, don't you agree?" She aimed for support from Steve, but he may not have been the best person to ask "Sure. I mean, you have a steady job at a government agency, sure her army father would need to back off."

They all seemed to know an awful lot about his life. But I guess it made sense, considering she was the team's physician and he was the lead of their team. "So what do you think I should do?"

Penny looked at Steve "Can I have my phone back please?" Bruce rushed towards her, "Oh no Penny, you shouldn't, no, we're gonna get tracked and and..." Green lines around his pupils… Steve got up and got in between them, shielding Penny from any potential Hulk-rage. She hit him slowly in his arm "Hey! What was that for?" She glared at him and placed her hand on Bruce's arm. "Hey, Hey. listen to me. You're gonna breath in and breath out. You're both there in your head and you both need to calm down OK?" He looked at her again and his shallow breathing started slowing down. "Okay."

"Plus, c'mon, we all have geotags. There's no hiding our location to the big brother." She saw Steve's puzzlement "Sorry, book reference. Yeah, you prolly didn't know about the tags either. Well, we all do. Tiny chip somewhere in our body. Anyway, let's say I call Dr. Ross, a colleague, from my cell phone and you just happen to be around..."

"They're monitoring her calls." She looked annoyed "So what? You can just check on her, see how she's doing, tell her you're fine. That's it. Worst case scenario, Fury gets upset with me. Big deal." She unlocked her phone and went through her contacts. "There, up to you." She handed over the phone to Bruce and resumed her seat in the hood of the car, patting next to her for Steve to join her.

Bruce stared at the iPhone for 3 solid minutes. Then he dialed. A sweet female voice on the other day said "Hello Penny?" He remained silent. Penny and Steve kept their distance and started whispering "You think that's a good idea?" She sighed "They have unfinished business, they need to sort it out."

"Do you have unfinished businesses Doc?" She grabbed another rib and offered the last one to him. "Don't we all?" He remembered Peggy and their date that never happened; how he never got the nerve to check what had happened to her, before they shut down all his accesses.

She checked the time, only 30 minutes to get back to the headquarters.

"Cinderella clause, right." he threw the bone into the bag and told Bruce they had to head back and he nodded while talking over the phone "I'm not sure we'll be able to drop you home, don't think we have enough time to get back."

"Don't worry about it. Had a good time Cap?" he nodded. "Maybe next time we can go to downtown, I'd like to see those streets lightened up." She came closer to him again, it was chilling and he was always very warm "I'll check with your liaison. I think you'd like Greenwich Village better though, seems more you." He liked feeling someone knew him. Bruce joined them a second after that, smiling and looking alive and younger than they'd ever seen him before.

"I guess that call went well?" she raised her eyebrow while grinning at him. "It did, but I'll get you in trouble." She jumped off the hood and headed to the driver's seat "Nah, don't worry about it, I'm used to it."


	6. Chapter 6: Hill

**Would love to hear what you think!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to the Avengers or any of the characters.**

* * *

**Chapter 6: Hill**

It was Monday again. She had been able to take that long bath after dropping Bruce and Steve at the Headquarters and had spent most of the weekend sleeping and eating.

She moved the curtains to let the light in, it was dim and small snowflakes were filling the glass outside. The street was mildly white and she thought of child games with snowballs back in Queens. She had to get back to the office, no rest for the wicked.

By the time she got to the Headquarters, the snow was covering the windshield and it was hard to see. She parked in her usual spot, came through security and heard an annoying beep. "You need to see Agent Hill immediately." She hadn't sent anyone to escort her. Attempt at Good will, like she was gonna fall for that. She sighed heavily and took the elevator to the top floor.

She didn't enjoy standing at that door, made her feel like she was heading for detention after a long chat with a careless principal. She knocked and a rough female voice asked her to come in.

Hill was sitting at her desk, shuffling some papers and documents on her screens. She knew what this was about already and so did Hill, but she still wanted to make it obvious… recorded call, Betty's record, her phones records, all there to display.

Hill was now in a position to bitch her about this and was more than happy to do so. "What stunt were you trying to pull? Pier 17? Calling Dr. Ross? You wanted civilian casualties?" Her line was cut due to coughing. Oh, Hill could get sick, good.

"You should see a doctor about that cold" they measured each other "I'm seeing one now and I'm not impressed." Penny rolled her eyes and laid back a bit in the comfy armchair. "Ouch!" She was being as annoying as Stark.

"I'm waiting" Penny raised an eyebrow with mild disdain "I'm waiting for a reason not to get you off these premises permanently, Dr. Morse"

She snorted. "You're not high enough in the food chain to make that call." "Yet" Penny lift her eyebrow "Oh, you're playing that game now?"  
"What game?"  
"Well, you've managed to sit on Coulson's office. The next is what... Fury? Do you really think you can take him down?"

Hill had got up and was now sitting on her desk, arms crossed over her chest and ignored her implications "You really think that after the stunt you pulled in the hellicarrier you'll be active again?" She came closer to Penny, "If you don't stop risking everyone with your little boundary experiments on this team, I'll make damn sure that not only you never see yourself in an agent suit again but your _other_experiment gets shut down."

Penny breathed heavily. "Which one? I have so many you hadn't even heard of. If you mean the formula, Fury already beat you to it. But I guess that's what he always does: being one step ahead of you."

They got interrupted by a loud knock on the door "Oh, your partner in crime. Come on in." Bruce walked in battered but still had a shy smile for Penny, sitting on the armchair by her.

Calling Ross had been her idea, Bruce had said no and did in fact started having an episode that he had been able to control. But it was the second in the same day, at least that she had seen. Maybe there had been more. She had to do the right thing, after all, he was her patient. "Dr. Ross has been helping with the _Vita Rays _container." Suddenly she found herself being cooperative. "Why didn't you ask Stark for that? His father created the first one."

Bruce wanted to talk but the female banter wouldn't allow someone cutting in. "His father left no records, just vague blueprints. If there were better ones, they were destroyed. And Stark has bigger fish to fry in LA right now."

"And why would you call Dr. Ross on a Friday night?" She looked baffled "I work late hours! So does she!"

"I called her. I knew Pen- Dr. Morse had been talking to her and I took her phone when she was getting food. You don't need to cover for me Doc. I take full responsibility." Penny looked at him. He was right. He was ultimately the Hulk, everyone in that building knew better than pissing him off.

"Dr. Banner, you are very well aware that this Agency has boundaries, specially with the military. I received a call from Gral. Ross at 3 AM. It wasn't pleasant."

Clearly, she hadn't got the "Don't piss Banner off" memo with green letters that Stark had sent everyone last April's fool's day.

"It won't happen again Agent Hill." She took a deep breath, as if trying to gain strength "You're hereby suspended from outside contact Dr. Banner. You'll be assigned a liaison agent whom will validate and have sole authority on what and who you can interact with. I'm sorry."

Bruce didn't complain. Actually, he didn't have time. "Did you not read his record lately? You can't shut him down! He's made so much progress hanging out with Stark and-" "and with you Dr. Morse? Sure, look where he got. Dismissed."

She was gonna go on with her ranting but Bruce grabbed her arm "It's ok Penny" she sighed "No it's not. No it's NOT Agent Hill! He's not a prisoner, he's a US citizen and a key member of this team and you wanna do what? Shackle him maybe and lock him up like you've been doing with Rogers? It doesn't work like that. They need to talk about what happens with someone that cares!"

"Yes, that's why they'll have a liaison. Someone _other _than you. You'll continue your functions as MD, don't worry. In fact, since you're such a good one, you're on call for the next 96 hours. Good day doctors."

They stormed out of the office and Bruce found himself checking her pupils for any signs of green lines... "It's ok Penny. I don't think they'll lock me up." A guard came closer to them and asked Bruce to follow him "Ok, well, we'll see about that. Oh Penny! Check my records, I've found a redundancy in your formula. If you clear it up, is sustainable." She got desperate "Officer, wait!".

"Work your magic kiddo, is on my records." The elevator door closed and she rushed to the stairs, putting her Bluetooth on her free ear "Brandon, did you catch that?"

"Yes Dr P., I'm transferring Dr. Banner's data to your pad now. Just in the nick of time if I may add." She smiled "You rock Bran."

She was so immersed in checking the files in her iPhone and couldn't really hear anything with the standard SHIELD comm in one ear and the Bluetooth in another that she missed that someone was coming up the stairs. She was startled and lost balance, and though he was able to ease up the fall for both by catching her, she still hit her head against the wall when the landed 3 steps down.

"Ouch" something weird was covering her eye "Good morning to you too sweetheart" She was slightly confused. "Hi handsome, sorry." She took off the Bluetooth and tried to get the hair of her eye. Only, it wasn't hair, it was blood. "Oh shit."

"Yeap, why don't I take you to another doctor, shall we?"

"Sure, just take your hand off my ass." He placed her between the wall and his body. She looked at him with one open eye. Her breath was slightly agitated and he had a pleased smirk when he saw her head tilt slightly and aim for his neck. He could feel her breath on his ear "I SAID HANDS OFF MY ASS BARTON."

He took a step back. "You're no fun." She grinned. Now half her face was bloody, bringing bad flashes to his head. "That's what exes are for sweetie."

She opened the floor door and decided to head for the elevator. Clint picked her phone, and decided to keep it for a while. She seemed confused enough not to remember it so he may as well take advantage of it. He rushed and caught her before she pushed the 10th. "Thanks by the way."

"For grabbing your ass?"

She snorted "You're never gonna change, are you?"

"Nope."

* * *

**Hill's here. Yeah, I know, but a girl needs a antagonist, right?**

**Also, BAD BAD CLINT!**


	7. Chapter 7: Bobbi

**Disclaimer: I do****n't own anything related to the Avengers, the comics, the movie, nothing. Zip. **

**I'd love to hear what you gotta say about this. I'm really into this story and where is going and I'd love to hear from you! Don't be shy!**

* * *

**Chapter 7: Bobbi**

With no sign of his liaison agent, Steve had to stay in the entire weekend, with access to the kitchen, his room, all the movies and books that happened before 1944 at his disposal and the entire training & recreation area in the 8th floor for himself.

Bruce joined him for lunch and dinner on both days but he often found him tuning out on his touchpad, working on some formula, possibly Penny's.

Early Monday morning he heard a knock on his room door and when it opened there was a box. For a minute he feared it'd be a nasty practical joke from Stark or Clint, but he decided to open it anyway.

Inside there was a pad with instructions on a post it. There was also an iPhone with no internet access but email capabilities. He went through the contacts and found all the team, trainers, medics, Hill and Fury. There was also a contact labeled "liaison", that had only an e-mail address.

He decided to send a thank you note. It was answered almost immediately "np."

He started fooling around the pad and found a list of his contacts and a column of the different activities he was allowed to do with each.

He found himself looking for Bruce and Penny before everyone else. They both said the same thing. "Text, Short Calls, E-mails - assignment related ONLY. Lunch within the facility." On Dr. Morse's row it also read "Main physician." No training, sparring or going out allowed though.

He wasn't called upon during the weekend or this morning, and though he felt somewhat of an expectator in the call-dr-ross incident, he felt he was being punished all the same. You don't get away with what you want while working for SHIELD. _Am I working for SHIELD anyway?_

As if someone had heard him (Well someone probably was, he wasn't delusional as to not think every room in the facility was tapped and filled with cameras) he got a text from the same contact. "New Assignment: Training room 805. 0930 hs. Bring pad."

He was up and ready to train since 7 am so he still had half an hour. He thought of going through the 10th to check on Bruce or Penny. He remembered the list and how he WASNT supposed to talk to them other than for assignment-related tasks, and it wasn't remotely lunch time yet.

He decided to take the stairs up and stopped when he saw a small stain of blood. He used his comm and let facilities know something had happened "We are aware captain, thank you." No information.

He made up his mind and went straight to the 10th floor for the ER rooms. In there he found Clint waiting outside a room that had the glass currently shaded. He was playing with a battered phone, with too many colours to be his. Yellow circle, blue, red, then yellow again. It looked just like Penny's bag. "What happened?"

"She couldn't keep her hands off me and fell off the stairs." Steve looked serious "The truth now?" Clint always liked being around Rogers because he was a down to earth guy, that called people "Son". He didn't like him when he reminded him he outranked his years of SHIELD service just for having a serum. Anyone can have one of those these days apparently.

"She was with her stupid Bluetooth and the comm and reading from this thing. I'm telling you, she shouldn't be allowed to drive. I got my arm scratched too by the way. Wanna see?" he kinda hugged Steve in a girlie way which made the big guy laugh a bit.

"Hey, shouldn't you be in Training room 805?" Steve looked puzzled "How you know that? You're the liaison guy?" He sighed. "Nope, I'm supposed to train you in new combat strategies or some shit. And then hand-to-hand combat, Van Damme kinda way. Very bromance thing."

"I did not understand a WORD you've just said, but hey, sure. You know who it is?" "Your liaison? No idea." They both seemed to have ignored the fact he was holding her phone so he pocketed it. "And you're keeping her phone why?"

"Oh, I'm taking it to the nerds to get it fixed." The door opened and a very pale Dr. Morse came out. She had a small bandage on the very top of her forehead and some of her golden hair had got a reddish tone.

"Hey you. I'm supposed to ignore you. Who has coffee? I need coffee." Dr. Wyatt came out right behind her. "Barton, her scans are correct, she has to stay up for the next 2 hours in case of a concussion and I've just gave her some painkillers. She'll have to start her turns tomorrow, not today. She's all yours."

Clint and Steve looked at each other "I'm all mine. You guys go your Avengery thingy. I'll just stay in and sit quiet and listen to radio shows." She walked a step and blinked slightly. Both Steve and Clint grabbed her to keep her from falling "Ok, she can't be left alone. You can't be left alone."

"I have other patients, I could sign her up for observation but she signed the release form." Steve was about to snap at Dr. Wyatt but Penny's loud tones made him stop "Oh Bruuuuuuuuuuuuce! Bruce you're back!" She came closer to a very surprised and guarded Bruce and hugged him. "Thank you thank you thank you for the formula, you're a life saviour, it can work, it can work, I can operate him and things will ok, and why are you guys giving me that look? I'm perfectly fine."

Clint looked at Dr. Wyatt "I'll sign her up. I need you to fill some forms." Dr. Wyatt came in and Clint turned around a bit while following him "Cap, can you keep an eye on her? I'm gonna be late for training anyway." He nodded.

"Penny, Penny, leave Bruce for a minute, come here." She grabbed his arm "Bye Bruce." She waved at him and he locked himself in his office, shimmering grey the outside glass doors and windows, but keeping one see-through to see them from the distance.

Steve took her to her office and sat her on her loveseat. "Oh, these drugs are awwwwesome, everything's so… colorful. Your eyes are blue, like the sea in a sunset. Anyone ever told you that?"

He sat next to her "You like my eyes Dr. Morse?" he was slightly amused at this new finding. "Oh yes. They're lovely. Don't call me Morse, call me something else." She was laying back in the sofa but he brought her back to full seating "Like what, mmm, let's see, Penny?"

She frowned "Oh crap, I can't frown, it hurts! And I love frowning!" She wanted to lean on the sofa again, and again he pushed her back, this time grabbing her with his arm over her shoulders "Ok, so, what should I call you? I heart Barton calls you Nell."

"Well, yeah, he's family. Family calls me Nell. There's Penny, but it's like _meh_. And everyone calls me that, _boo._ Damn frowning, frowning not good, not good. Ehm, well, there's Nella, there's Nelly. No don't laugh Captain Rogallo, I mean Rogaine, you! What the hell did Wyatt give me?"

"So, Nella? It's sounds old fashioned" She sighed and got comfy near the curve of his neck "Mom called me that. You're warm. Well, there's also Bobbi. I hate it more than Penny, but some people still call me that. Or Birdie." He moved a bit further from her. He felt that it'd look as if he was taking advantage of the situation. She moaned at being forced to sit still again "Bobbi? How come?" She looked annoyed, like an 8 year old who's been denied dessert.

"You liked THAT one? God, you're such a guy." He giggled. "My middle name is Barbara. I'm Penelope Barbara afff Morse now. I'm blond you know, so is the Barbie doll, so jerks called me "Barbie" when I was in college. It was hard enough being 14 and being there. The moment I got emancipated I removed it from existence." She snapped her fingers and went on "Like that. But it was saved somewhere and someone, my bet is _stupid_ Clint dig it up and well, I became "Bobbi Morse, fearless agent. It sucked."

"Wait? College at 14?" She lift her unbroken eyebrow. "Good, I can do one questioning eyebrow with almost no pain! You didn't know? Ask me again when I'm not really high on drugs please" He smiled "Alrighty miss. About your name, I think I like Penelope better." She smiled "You're so kind. I like it better too. Nite nite."

She passed out on his shoulder and he couldn't wake her up. Bruce got out of his room and gave a heads up on Wyatt's office. Rogers rushed carrying her there and placed her on the examining couch right when she started convulsing. Clint rushed next to her and held her down "What did you give her?"

"A standard dose of Demerol. She said it was OK."

"She had just hit her head and was confused, didn't care checking her record?" Steve went to the screen and checked it. "It says in here that she can't take Opioids after... Oh."

Clint was sounding desperate, he only heard him like this once, when Widow was exposed in an op "She can't take these. You need to wash them off. NOW!" Wyatt called a prep team and they started moving her towards the elevator, "Don't you think for a second that you'll get away with it Norman! Everyone will hear about this fuckup!" Bruce came back to his room once an officer nearby asked him to. "Please let me know what happens to her guys." Clint nodded, "Cap, you coming?"

Steve was still looking at her medical record _"after captivity. Test subject. May induce delusional state and comma." _The medical history added one line, he assumed Wyatt was dictating to someone what had just happened. He was about to leave when another little box called his attention. "Emergency contacts: Barton, Clint (husband), Coulson, Philip (supervisor)."

Clint came into the office and saw what was taking all of Steve's attention on the screen. "Husband?" He was onto them "Ex. That's outdated. Long story." Steve had that _I outrank you_ look about him again. Clint knew that wasn't going to move until he got an answer. "I've got time." They started walking to the elevator "Look, she's very private. She doesn't want people to know." He nodded "I know, I just feel that you all know everything there is to know about me and look! She's been my doctor for over a year, my friend, and you and I fought together and I didn't know you two were an item" The elevator door opened, they came in. "We're not an item, she's in the market." Steve looked puzzled "She's not emotionally attached to me. It's complicated. She's free to pursue or be pursued by whomever, if you know what I mean" Steve blushed "Are you implying I want to pursue your wife? I'm just confused Barton"

He was from the 40s, maybe he was genuinely baffled. He slowed down a nudge, he wasn't pissed at Steve but at that shitty Wyatt character that had survived way too many fuckups on this facility. "I'm not saying that. It's just, gosh how do I explain this to you. It was ages ago, we were kids. A lot of shit happened after that. Here's the thing…" the doors closed.


	8. Chapter 8: Plausible deniability

**Disclaimer: I do****n't own anything related to the Avengers, the comics, the movie... you know the drill :)**

**I'd love to hear what you gotta say about this. I'm really into this story and where is going and I'd love to hear from you! Don't be shy!**

* * *

**Chapter 8: Plausible deniability**

It felt like Monday again. Only this time she felt a taste of plastic and a bit of a sore throat. She was slightly confused as to where she was. Then she remembered. She had hit her head. Clint had taken her to Wyatt. She got painkillers but couldn't stay up. There was Bruce and Steve too. And then she was at the beach? How could she be at the beach? She checked her forehead and felt little band aids pulling together a small scar. _Stitches, great._

It was snowing outside, a bit of light came through the door and she could see the inner patio of the building. She lifted her head a bit and counted the floors. _Fourth floor. Civilian-allowed. Must not be that bad._

She stretched in the bed and a nurse came in. "Let me pull this out and you're free to go." She saw a new set of clothes in the chair next to the bed, along with her phone fixed. Odd, she didn't remember grabbing her phone. _Oh shit. _She rushed to it and saw she had several lost calls from Patricia. She'd have to call her back later. And one text.

"I hope you like the clothes, were the first one I've found on your closet." He had broken into her house, great. A new text. "And no, I didn't break in, I got your keys. Your shirt was stained with blood sweetheart."  
She answered the text while checking the clothes "And you fixed my phone too?"  
"You welcome. Nice pictures." _Shit shit shit._  
"Thanks." Clint walked through the door right then "Who is the little girl?"  
"She's the daughter of a friend of mine." He closed the door behind him and grayed the glass walls. When she looked at him puzzled he clarified "I don't think you want an audience while changing your clothes." She agreed "That'd include you." he disregarded her comment and stayed lying over the door, with his arms crossed over his chest. She went over the clothes, grey Victoria's secret underwear.  
"I always liked you in grey" she looked at him. "You went through my drawers?"  
"Well, you needed underwear too!" She couldn't stay mad at him, even if he clearly went through her house, looking for _something_.  
"What do you want Clint?"  
"Why are you so obsessed with this?" She headed to the bathroom to dress up but he got in between her and the door "I've never seen you this obsessed with anything since you were in training." She lifted her eyebrow trying to imply how annoyed this whole thing made her.

"I had brought you coffee too. I drank it on the way up. Sorry." She sighed. "It's my job Clint."  
"Yes, but you were beaming at Bruce for sorting it out yesterday, don't you remember?" _Oh shit, I don't remember. _Her head hurt when she frowned, and she loved frowning.  
"Well, you even hugged him, before collapsing on top of Rogers."  
"I did what?"  
"Yes, Captain Tightpants was quite in shock." He let her through the bathroom but jammed the door with his boot so she couldn't close it. Since she was being watched, she put on her clothes without taking off her robe. It proved a very difficult task, especially with the throbbing headache and the lack of coffee. "He knows by the way." She looked at him through the mirror. "About..." he showed his ring finger. Only, no ring. "Oh."

"I explained that you're very single and available, so don't worry." She made a disgusted noise at him "Oh come on, I'm helping him adjust!" he sneered "Keep telling yourself that sweetheart." He stared at the way she buttoned her shirt. "Oh, I missed them in all the yelling!" She pulled the door opened and he almost tripped but she caught him.

"What is so important about this?" she left the robe on the bed and headed for the shoes.  
"Stilettos? Stilettos?" She sat on the bed to put them on. "Hey, they were in your closet!"  
"They're party shoes, not working shoes! I'm walking and running all day. How am I supposed to run in these heels?"  
"Natasha can run on those" _She's fucking perfect, I forgot._  
She put them on. She knew he wouldn't let it go. She knew how mad he'd get when he found out, because he would find out, she was sure of it.

She also knew she was in one of the most packed-with-surveillance buildings in the country. She couldn't hint this without getting to Fury in less than 5 minutes. And that was the end of everything.

"I'm just very dedicated to my job now. It's the one thing that still makes sense." He took a deep breath and sat next to her, stroking her back gently "There was nothing you could do Nell, he was beyond saving." She cleared her throat. "Right, well, I have work to do."

"You can't obsess about this job like he did." She snorted "says the guy that fights demigods with his bow." they shared a smile. There was a knock on the door, a guard telling her she needed to see Fury immediately.

"I'm having a Déjà vu here. Hill yesterday, now Fury" She patted him on his knee and headed to the door. "Why didn't you go to his funeral?" _Right, that. No problem, I have a canned response for that one. _"I- I couldn't let him go. I couldn't see him dead." she swallowed heavily. Her throat hurt and all this bickering was making her worse. He wasn't buying it, they shared a look.

"He was dead and there was nothing I could do to save him. I couldn't deal with that. My ego couldn't deal with that." He bought even less now. _Good. I mean, no, terrible, shit, someone's seeing this. Shit shit shit._

He walked closer to her "Dinner sometime this week?" she couldn't say yes, whoever was watching would know he'd want to push her into confessing "I can't. I have a deadline."  
"Right, he'll pull the plug."  
"Exactly" She looked at him gravely and it hit him. It wasn't figurative speech. She could see the distress and anger in his eyes. She had to keep it contained. She couldn't afford the whole thing blowing up due to Clint's temper.

And she couldn't afford someone picking up he figured something out from the cams on the room "Hey, since you've been such a nice ex today is my turn. Just a piece of advice: dont't get caught on camera making out with Widow in your suits, Fury will shut you down _permanently. _Be careful, okay?". _Get it, you're smart. Keep your frakking mouth shut. _He was a bit less confused but still angry "I can't get caught on camera, because there's nothing going on between us"

There was that agent knocking again. _Shit, Fury is watching. Shit. Shit. Shit. _"Whatever you say. I gotta go see _Fury_." She hoped he got the stress she placed in the name. _Fury is behind this, not me, not me._

He had. "Go, we don't want to upset Herr Director." She started walking to the elevator and he rushed to her to giving her back her phone. "Don't forget this; you don't want it falling in the wrong hands." She smiled at him, trying to put the pieces together. It had taken them a long time to be friends again, and this was fucking it up. He took off through the stairs. Yes, he was mad. He was furious, but not at her. She just hoped he'd keep his mouth shut until she could explain, otherwise everything was lost.

When she was in the elevator, she realized she had an unsent message in her phone "I keep quiet, you come clean."


	9. Chapter 9: Director Fury

**Disclaimer: I do****n't own anything related to the Avengers.**

**I'd love to hear what you gotta say about this piece. It's not yet done and I'd love to hear your feedback! Don't be shy!**

* * *

**Chapter 9: Director Fury**

Fury's office was on the far left corner of the building, taking over a good portion of this side of the floor. Stark would call it the _Penthouse _(and was incredibly mad when he had to settle for a built-in parking spot in the 10th floor terrace, with the oh-poor-peasants).

Penny walked slowly with the hills. She could use them as well, she wouldn't _jog with them _like Romanoff, but hey, she could pull the agent-in-a-suit outfit. She hadn't walked in them in a long time, that was all. _No reason to go out, no reason to stay in, nothing to go home to._

She tried shaking off those thoughts from her head. Effing drugs. She couldn't get there again, not now, not when it was so important to stay focused in the task at hand. She looked towards Fury's office and the door was wide opened. He was pacing up and down, reading from a pad.

She reached the door and knocked slowly "Doctor Morse, please come in." Ever obedient, she walked in towards the desk while he closed the door behind her. She sat down at one of the chairs and waited to be bossed around. "How are you feeling today?" his voice was still coming from behind her "I'm good Sir. I could use some cof-" a mug with a latte was placed on the desk right before her.

"Thank you Sir."

He sat on his desk. It seemed oddly normal, like taken from a banker's office. Papers, phone with speakers, picture of a dog. A Badass rottweiler. It did had 3 different touch screens, a touch-desk and 2 or 3 pads also, but pretty standard mahogany all the same.

She put some sugar on her coffee and took a small zip, taking all the smell in. She still felt her senses heightened. _Side effects. Great._

"Can you resume your functions?" _Would that buy me more time? Nah_.

"Do I get an extension with the formula deadline if I say no?"

"No."

"Then I'm okay Sir." He took a zip of his own coffee. Black coffee of course, no sugar.

"What's your game plan?" She wondered if she was tripping or if he had actually started sounding like a bank director.

"Banner found the glitch in the formula. I need to synthesize it and once that's done, ray it."

"Is Stark helping?"

"I hadn't asked him. Dr. Ross is." he gritted his teeth. "I heard. Agent Hill wasn't pleased with that."

"Agent Hill is not aware of my task regarding the team. I mean, not all of them."

"No, she's not. But that doesn't mean you can gloat and do what you please Dr. Morse."

"Noted. If I may Sir, Banner needs Dr. Ross."

"Does he now?"

"Yes. He has emotional containment that only heightens his split personality. The only way he'll truly be in control of the Hulk is if he faces his inner demons."

"That's what you've come up with? Split personality and child trauma?"

"No, that was quite clear 5 years ago Sir. Most of his fears and lock ups are related to childhood. He's very reluctant to talk about that." he looked at her intently "Go the Freud way and blame the green guy on bad parenting."

"So, you've had thought this through."

"Yes sir. Dr. Ross can balance him out. It'll help me reach out to him and see if both personalities can coexist."

"And if they can't?"

"They have so far. I believe adding Dr. Ross to the team will not only bring incredible value to the research part of this agency but will bring stability on his fragile mind."

"I'll think about it. Now rays. You need to develop the formula with specific ray rates in order for it to work, correct?"

"Yes."

"Get Stark."

"But Bruce can-" he stared "I will Sir. Then I need to test it. If things go well, I can use it on Agent _Cheese _and operate him."

"What's the window?"

"12 hours, 14 at the most. It will depend on the formula. I'm counting on Captain Rogers' blood helping stabilize his system a bit longer."

"Counting on?"

"I have statistics. It's been a year and all his brain functions seem to be alright. No change. They should've decreased after a year of sustained coma, yet, they're not."

"What are you saying?"

"He's not waking up because of the junk of Tesseract Loki left in his chest Fury, he should be up and running otherwise."

Fury hated that device. He hated having the idea of making weapons with it, but they needed a way to defend themselves from external attacks. There hadn't been any since the team of divas came together.

In its place however, mayhem all over the world started. Everyone wanted a piece of this team, whether it was the government (any of the 10 behind SHIELD) or the increasing fan base on the web, he was the only firewall between the Avengers and the mess out there.

"So you think that if you put this temporary formula you can successfully extract the shred and save his life?"

"Yes Sir, I can."

"You better get to it then, I need him here."

"What are we going to do about them sir? If this goes well I mean."

"Nothing. If the surgery is successful, they'll be happy to have him back."

"I think you're underestimating their ability to be pissed off. Sir."

"Why are you so concerned?" _They're my friends and I'm a deceitful bitch._

"I've made a connection with them. They won't be pleased knowing I've been lying to them all this time." _And Clint will kick my ass._

"You are a big girl. When you chose to use Captain Rogers' blood on him, you caused a lot of problems. The only reason why you're not in Guantanamo right now is-"

"Because I did the right call?" she smirked, which only made Fury more visibly upset "Because it worked. I believed you when you said you were making progress about this serum. I covered up to get this working"

"You covered up because what you used to motivate them to be a team was a lie, Sir." _Cos you're that kind of manipulative asshole. _He paused. Apparently she wasn't concealing her inner thoughts very well. So he did the obvious thing.

"You have 2 weeks left for testing and succeeding with the formula."

"And then you pull the plug."

"Yes." _I'd like to see you try._

"And nothing ever happened."

"Things would be a lot easier for me if I just cancelled this entire task Dr. Morse. And I still can, remember that. So don't try playing games with me." _Not games, just hints here and there._

"I wouldn't dare to, Sir." He got up and placed his knuckles on his desk. _Such a badass, so scary_.

"If you tell them, Phil Coulson is gone, and you'll end up teaching in some campus. It's his future life or their trust, your call."

She took a deep breath and reassessed the situation. Like the 10 billion times before. She wanted Phil around; there were so many things he deserved to see for himself, to live them... But Bruce and Steve… They were her friends, and there was only so much deceiving she could handle. Plus there was Clint, he could spill the beans any minute, to Romanoff or anyone. _If he got it. Sure he got it, I mean, he got it. He must have gotten it._

She took a deep breath and coughed to clear her throat, but it hurt. "Is there anything else you need from me sir?"

"Actually, yes. I need you to contact Peter Parker." he handed over a pad with information and resumed his bank director sitting position. "You want him to join the party Sir?"

"Not exactly." she read the _Compensations _part of the debriefing. "Oh, paid internship and a full scholarship in ESU. Because he's broke..." She looked at him "I see why you're choosing me for this."

"Well, I think is appropriate." he sat back. "I'm honoured you chose me for this, but wouldn't someone like Romanoff be more... _appropriate _for this task?" she timidly looked over the pad.

"We're not bringing him in for questioning. He needs the money and is very smart. And a loose cannon. Just like you."

"Thanks for the compliment Sir."

"You've seen Coulson do this countless times, time to take on the mantle" she suppressed the smile "It can take time, he's not going to just want to join SHIELD."

"I'm sure you can find a way to get him to work for us."

"I'll start today Sir." she was getting up to leave.

"There's one more thing. We've retired Wyatt yesterday after your... incident." She seemed doubtful "And you want me to be Lead MD?" He was giving her way too many chores already. "No, I'm bringing someone else for that. And to help you with the surgery"

He pressed a button on his desk phone "Send him in". Did he have a secretary now? Penny turned to the door to see who it was. A dark blond man with a Hawaiian shirt, khaki pants and a relaxed attitude came through. "Hello Sir, Birdie." She was beaming at the new guy "How was your flight Dr. Hoban?"

He came nearer the desk and sat on the chair next to Penny "It was... fast! They put me in one of these new triangular things Birdie, I wanted to pilot it, but it didn't have controls. _Very _disturbing."

Fury cleared his throat "Dr. Hoban will resume Dr. Wyatt's tasks."

"Only, I'll make sure to keep Opioids away from you!" they shared a sarcastic giggle.

"And will help you with your other task, in the event of the surgery happening."

"Oh it will most definitely happen, Sir."

"Good then. Show him around would you? Dismissed" They nodded and walked out.

The moment Fury's door was closed behind them, they yelled like school girls while hugging each other "Oh my God Hobbie, I can't believe you're here. How did he talk you into this? Weren't you like-"

"Enjoying myself in a beach, tanning my pink and oversensitive skin while listening to the seagulls?" she nodded "Well, it was more of a "deal with malaria, diarrhea and no running water" while finding sand in places I didn't even know I had. Daily." She pat him on the back "Well, that's what the Peace Corps do you know." He sighed "Yes, but I was _pretending _to be in the Peace Corps, see? I helped with what I could, but I was there for reckon, bag and tag, do spy thingies!"

They got into the elevator "So you came back for the running water and frapuccinos? That's so shallow of you!" He slapped her shoulder "I came after he said what that _hwoon dahn _had done to you, thank you very much." she pinched his cheeks "Oh so sweet of you!"

"And to see Stark up close."

"I can't believe you're still fangirling about Stark."

"He's Tony Stark! He reaches Mach 3 with his armoured suit!" Suddenly they reached the 10th floor "He's a jerk trying to overcompensate!" and Bruce was right there getting some coffee.

He waved at Penny and the newcomer "I guess you're talking about Stark?" she smiled, introducing Dr. Alan Hoban as the new MD.

"You had us worried yesterday." He brushed her arm in a comforting way and nodded stating he was going to his office. Hoban started asking her about the surgery, way too loudly, "Fury didn't tell you about the secrecy part?"

"Well, he wasn't detailed as to how much we're supposed to say."

"No one's supposed to know the details Alan."

"Wow, I hit a nerve! Alright (faking a whisper) Penelope."

"There are lives at stake." _One life at stake_.

"I know, I know. I'm sorry. How are you copying with this whole um, _Cheese _thing?" They reached her office "It's hard, I mean, the numbers look promising but he's still, you know. Gets frustrating" She looked at Bruce through their shared glassed window and he looked away, pretending not to have heard everything they had just said. She hid a pleased look.

Bruce went to his Phone and called Steve. "Hi! Remember what we were wondering the other day? When we were waiting? Well I got the name. Of the restaurant. Yeah, so we can google it and see if we can order takeout. Come around later? Bye." His eyes met Penny's for a moment while hanging up. She looked away having a pleased half smile.


	10. Chapter 10: Super secret boy band

**Disclaimer: I do****n't own anything related to the Avengers!**

**Don't be say and leave your comments, highly appreciated!**

* * *

**Chapter 10: Super Secret (boy) Band**

Penny was explaining Hoban how to work things around in the floor, after introducing him to the doctors on the other side of the building. Their offices were on the science-side of the floor, whereas most of the equipment and the rest of the MDs and the ORs were on the far left. There was also the terrace, Stark's built-in parking spot, which had made the building a systematic target for crazy nutcases and the Avengers' fan base.

Leaving the building when Stark was around required a minimum of dark glasses and armored cars, though the task was slightly easier for normal-looking-agents and nerd-looking people like Bruce or Penny. Around two months back, a crazy paparazzi managed to break off from the Visitor's tour and reached the agents' quarters on the 3rd floor. He was able to take some pictures of the installation that somehow saw the light of day, even after he had the unfortunate luck of bumping into the Captain, who was labeled by the media as "a marine thug with great eyes." Everyone seemed to like his eyes.

There was mild speculation in social networks and gossip shows about him potentially being Captain America since he had been seen around Tony and Fury a couple of times, but then Mark and Larry from training also made appearances outside the building with them just to confuse people. Tony was against it of course but went along anyway, "Everyone should know who you are! Look at Natasha and Clint! All dressed up and faces for the world to see". The Captain didn't see eye to eye on this matter with Tony though.

After this incident, Tony was forced to keep his Iron man parking to a minimum, lowering down the attention-seeking mania he had by driving into the official building, like any normal person would. He was also _advised _to work permanently from his Malibu residence to have west-side coverage of the potential threats, whilst Steve, Bruce and Clint and Natasha would keep east and central-side coverage. Clearly, he wasn't going to take that advice this day.

Hoban was getting stressed out with all the technical stuff and security protocols he had to deal with. "Can we take a break? Go to the terrace maybe?" Penny nodded and grabbed her coat. They picked some coffee from the machine and headed outside. While they were zipping coffee slowly, chatting up in rusty Chinese they started hearing _Safe in New York City. _Coming out of nowhere, no, not nowhere: up.

Her animosity showed in her sarcastic tone "Oh great, you wanted to meet Stark, right?" Hoban's eyes broadened like those of a kid who just got a new toy. Stark's suit started coming out of him and the music slowed down. His chest was glittery and his cocky expression was rather grim today. They came closer to him "Dr. Quinn! I was hoping _not _to see you today." She pulled a sarcastic smile "Tin man. This is Alan Hoban"  
"New henchman?"  
"New Lead MD"  
"It's a pleasure to meet you" he extended his hand to shake, but Tony disregarded him and kept walking. "What happened to the last one? One too many doughnuts?"  
"_One too many fuckups _is more like it. I need your blood sample" he waved her away "No can do, gotta see the important people" she kept trailing behind him and Hoban was still way too eager to see him live to pick on his rudeness.  
"You should've come in for checkup 2 weeks ago Stark."  
"Don't you people have CNN here? I was fighting this really bad guy back in Sunnyland. Sorry." He knocked on Bruce's office door.  
"Actually we do. We saw this guy with red and blue spandex stopping a giant lizard from throwing a mutating gas to the city. Just with his talent. It was _quite impressive_." He stood on dry and turned around, seeing the pleased looked on her face "I'll fedex it to you, ok?"  
"Today"  
"You are one pushy blond you know that?"  
"It's all in the heels." Bruce came out of his room just in time to say hello to his science buddy before Fury and 4 officers came in to remind all of them their tasks.

"Stark, you're supposed to drive in."  
"It was urgent Fury, I couldn't just park in the Stark tower and drive here. You know the traffic this time of the day? Terrible!" Fury looked passed him "Dr. Banner, your liaison will come over later today." That was code for _"You can't leave your lab, even with Stark here." _He nodded. "Drs, you have things to do."

Fury and his officers started walking towards the elevator and kept talking to Tony, who called for Bruce, but he stayed in his lab. Stark was puzzled as to why Bruce wouldn't leave but didn't throw too many questions since he had an agenda of his own.

Hoban decided to head back on to his first day of work and went to the other side of the building to see the rest of the MDs and how they went through their day. Penny was picking some prints for Peter's _recruitment process_ and was heading back to her office when she heard it: Bruce was throwing a pad to one of the walls. _Shit._

"Brandon, jam the feeds but stay alert." The AI replaced the feed with some from earlier while she rushed towards him "Bruce? Bruce?" He was doing the sharp low breaths to control his anger. "I'm ok Penny, I'm ok." She checked his pulse and stared at his eyes, started mimicking his breathing. "Is this lamaze now?" they shared a giggle and and after a few minutes of joint breathing and soothing, his eyes were back to their honey brown.

She clicked on her Bluetooth without letting go of his wrist "We're okay. Make sure the feed makes sense." She looked at his eyes again. "I gotta go now, are you gonna be okay?"  
"What did you just do?"  
"Cut you some slack, that's all." He frowned confused. A guard came rushing from the bathroom; gun aimed at Bruce "What happened?" _Oh c'mon, give me a frakking break._  
"Hey, you may wanna put that down, we were talking here with Bruce and I was so silly I threw coffee in the pad, and then I got burnt and it fell."  
"Fell?"  
"Loudly"  
"I need to check the Security feed" he was heading to talk in his comm.  
"Sweety, do you really want to tell someone that you weren't at your station when a loud noise happened inside Dr. Banner's office?" Bruce was astonished as to see her being so... _Coulsony_. The heels really made her bossy alright.  
"I'll need to report that-."  
"That I dropped a pad cursing when I spilled coffee in it."  
"It's my job."  
"And keeping Banner safe is mine officer. I mean, sure, you can report my coffee spill, which would be a terrible embarrassment, just like your escapades to the OR with Dr. Stevens, don't you think?" He swallowed heavily and felt his neck was too tight. "I thought so." She took a step closer to the guy, talking to his same level "Tell you what. You report I broke a pad and there was a loud noise, which startled Bruce. That's why I was checking his pulse and I forget Dr. Stevens' hickeys from your last overnight shift together. Deal?" The officer nodded and walked away.

She moved back towards Bruce "Newbies, so easy to scare off." He snorted "You scared me there!" She asked again if he was going to be okay and he nodded. When she was walking away towards the elevator, he called her, "Thanks Peggy" she gave him a smile and pushed the button.

When the door opened, Steve was coming out "Hey." "Hey stranger, I gotta run." he saw her forehead and came closer to her, not realizing he had cupped her face with his hands. "Oh Peggy that looks bad." He lowered his gaze to her eyes and realized how improper he was being, taking a step back. "Yeah, I need to get bangs so the stitches aren't so obvious." She lingered there for a minute. So did he. She looked at him again "I _really_need to go and do stuff, see you later?"

He half smiled "Sure I'll spring my hand or something in training later. Hey you look very..." Yes, his inability to talk to women was still there "Tall. Pretty. I mean, it looks good on you." She felt colors rising to her face "Ok, thanks. Bye guys" She waved at Bruce who was passed Steve and closed the elevator door as soon as possible. _Blushing? Really? Stupid drugs._

Steve shook his head and turned towards his friend. "You're improving I think. Almost no mumbling! Good!" Steve tried to hide his embarrassment by gazing around looking for the officer assigned to the floor. "Oh, she just scared him off." Bruce wrote something down in a post-it and placed it on Steve's pocket "I'll call for takeout later, see if they bring it all the way here." They shared an accomplice grin.

"What's so funny guys?" Agent Romanoff came in. "Hello Natasha!" she smiled at both of them. She was carrying a flask of blood. "I'm here to drop this."  
"You're Stark's courier now?" It was the best attempt at changing the topic Bruce could come up with in front of her. "Apparently he is too tied up with Fury to do this himself. I had to come in anyway. Is Dr. Morse around?"  
"You just missed her." Steve had the feeling that it was exactly the point. "Oh." Natasha was doing the pouty lips thing. Yes, missing Penny was definitely the point. "I'll just drop this at her desk then." Everyone seemed to have an agenda. Romanoff wasn't the exception.

Steve came to Penny office's door step. "Natasha?" She was taking a blood sample from herself. "Since I'm here... I better leave mine as well." He didn't miss the fact that she was going through Penny's drawers and papers 2 seconds before he came in.

He had that _I outrank you _tone that exasperated Clint so much. "Are you going to tell me?" of course, she was Romanoff, that wouldn't work on her. "Everyone has secrets Cap, even Bruce and you." He came closer to her and leaned on Penny's desk.

"I'm trying to keep this team as straight as possible Natasha. No secrets, no lies." She snorted "You can't play a player Rogers" She took the tube off her arm and left it with her name in capital letters next to Stark's on the desk.  
"All I'm saying is, we're in this together, all of us, even Stark. I know this is far from perfect and is not like the life you used to have before we came together as a team. But we all have things to deal with and I believe is best if we sort them together, as the team we are."

She was dead serious, which was Natasha's usual look. He thought he sensed a shift in her posture though, making her seem slightly more vulnerable. He wasn't sure whether his words had hit her or if it was all part of a con that her life had turned into so many years ago. He pat her in the arm in a comforting way "What is it Natasha?"

She was thrown back by the brotherly gesture, which was unusual for her. She always calculated 3 steps ahead of her opponent. It took her years of re-training to stop thinking of everyone as a target, but sometimes it slipped. Things have been confusing lately in her head. She thought of saying something, but just stared at him.  
She was agent Romanoff, deadly specialized in reading and deceiving people, and getting the darkest truths out of them. Ask Loki if you don't believe us. So, why was she finding it so hard to keep her emotions at bay lately? Still no words were coming out of her.

He crossed his arms over his chest, then he looked around the desk and saw papers that were meaningless to him, but had some sort of value to Natasha. She was interested in Dr. Morse and he didn't believe for a second it had to do with petty things like female jealousy. No, we're talking about Natasha Romanoff here. She must have good reason to go over Penny's desk. He took a deep breath "If you have doubts on anyone on the team, you need to come forward." She looked at him inquisitively and half smiled. "Oh no, our team is just fine." She crossed her arms and walked away from the office into the elevator area "I'll see you later in practice Steve"

Bruce came out of his office to wave at Natasha but she bluntly ignored him. She seemed to be quite taken aback by her little talk with the lead Avenger. The officer came back to the large corridor and nodded at them but kept his distance. Steve and Bruce shared a concerned look. "I don't like this." Bruce nodded.

"You think this has to do with Barton? I mean, he's like, two-timing them" Steve shook his head "No, no, it's not that." Bruce took a deep breath "I dunno man, before Penny started being our doctor full time, I really thought Barton was with Natasha, but he has this way around Penny that, I dunno. I think he's two-timing them."

"They were married. Penny and him. Years ago." Bruce was stunned by these news. "Yes, well, I still think he's a dick." Steve agreed "He has a problem with taking orders, yes. Anyway, gotta go."

"Hey, so Penny is available?" Steve frowned "I… guess? I mean, maybe she's um, I dunno, she seemed interested in the… chef from that… restaurant." Bruce sneered at him "You're right, but I don't know… She seems unattached… and I have this friend I'd like to introduce her to. He's a nice guy, has that grim soldiery look upon him" he started laughing when Steve mocked-hit him in his stomach "You're a jerk Banner."

"Yeah, but I can get away with it. I'm a big green monster. Remember?"


	11. Chapter 11: The unsuspecting recruit

**Disclaimer: I don't own Avengers or Spidey. **

* * *

**Chapter 11: The unsuspected recruit**

The accidental meds from yesterday and the stitches on her forehead had taken a toll on her usually good complexion; she wasn't going to make a good impression. She took some clippers from her grove compartment and chopped off a bit of hair, trying to trim it into proper bangs. _There, good as new._

Another look in the rear-view mirror convinced her to put some makeup on. After 5 minutes of a heated argument with the eyeliner, she decided to go for the natural, I've-just-fell-off-the-stairs-and-got-stitches look. After all, the entire room was going to be filled with angsty teenage hormones; the last thing they'd notice was her forehead stitches.

She got off the car and saw a Chrysler imperial, black. Polished. Classic._ Right, he's here. Good. _She got her briefcase and pad and asked Brandon how everything was back at the office.

"Dr. Banner's stable, no further incidents. He seems rather interested in an alternative he found for his formula" when she reached the doors of the place, she exhaled slowly. She hated crowds. She hated _teen_ crowds. They were just sweaty, loud, noisy and obnoxious overgrown children. All they ever did was mock her for being smarter than them. And then treat her unfairly. And then think she was too full of herself. _What the heck am I doing here? What? Why? Stupid assignment. _

She exhaled again while taking little steps through the corridor. She needed to get to the principal's office. _Oh, cheerleaders, joy. _Then she needed to make contact with the Dean of ESU. _O__f course, the jogs come right after the pompons. _And then head to where the College Fair was. The gym: home of the worst bullies and highly unprepared jerks who turned to games because they can't handle their inner demons better. _I can take them down in a second, for all time's sake. _

She stopped and took a slow, deep breath with her eyes closed. She needed to shut those feelings down; it was the aftermath of the drugs. She was an adult. She knew better than them. She wasn't that scared little girl heading for college when she was way too young for it anymore. Real life was hard for everyone, even these kids. _Just breathe. _

She made eye contact with the Dean, who nodded and half smiled at her. Comforting. _That's over now. You're in an assignment. You need to recruit the kid. _She scanned the floor and saw him staring at her. Of course, the heels, the briefcase, the slow breathing. She became a mark the moment she set foot on that gym.

She walked towards the ESU stand, measuring every word she said. The kid still had his eyes on her. "Hello Stanny" he smiled "How are you Dr. Morse?" this was a long practiced mimic they had going on. "I'm doing fine. Had a little accident in the stairs yesterday, very foolish of me" he snorted. "I heard, loud and clear" She lifted her eyebrow annoyed "Is there anything Brandon doesn't tell you?" he giggled "I got the cam feed by email. Apparently those guys monitoring the stairs have all the fun. And I'm stuck in this Dean thing. So dull, you have no idea. I have to read essays with a Board of Boredom. Oh Dr. Sullivan, I don't think you've met Dr. Morse."

The mid-fifties woman was rather upset with Stanny's way of referring to a board that she was part of. "Hello Dr. it's lovely to see you again so… grown up!" they shook hands and she kept the small talk, shifting it back to Stanny, the "_youngest Dean this University has ever seen, truly… remarkable." _Yes, she definitely wanted that job and SHIELD got in her way. Well, she'd get it eventually, this was just temporary.

Sooner rather than later her mark and his girlfriend couldn't help coming in to their stand. Penny smiled at them in a friendly way and the girl answered. They seemed a normal senior couple, ready to take on the world. Penny picked on his… watch, which he hid from her view the moment he realized she was interested. "I'm Penny Morse, I was a student in ESU a few years back, have you decided on our little college?" she smiled frankly, there was something about this kid, you could see he was kind right away. She feared what SHIELD could turn him into.

His posture changed when he heard her name. He was off track, you could say _defenseless _"Wait a minute, you're THE Dr. Penelope Morse? The one with the transcription factor theory?" She blushed. "It's not my theory really, something similar was very popular in the 40's, I just focused it on the things we know today and the potential medical usages that could have. I am an MD after all" _And that's why Fury picked me for this. Gotcha kid._

"He wrote his application essay about that paper, I thought a biochemist wrote that" the blond girl was between jealous of her and proud of her boyfriend. His face changed to a grim all of the sudden. "I'm both actually. I feel much honored, not many people liked that essay. I guess most companies and agencies are more concerned about turning everything into weapons instead of making people's life easier" _Yes, I'm looking at you Stacy. _Stan felt it was the time to shut her up before she spilled the beans "So you're applying? I hope you're joining us, Mr.…" Stan was being smooth. _Smooth was his middle name. Sometimes._

"Parker, Peter Parker." They shook hands. Then Gwen Stacy introduced herself. She had a commendation letter from a former employer-now-turned-to-psycho-lizard. Not good for her. But her grades helped, and so did her work at Oscorp. Penny shivered slightly at the thought of that company. It was like Stark industries, only with no change of heart after being taken hostage by The ten rings. _Well, c__hange of heart could be a bit of a stretch._

Stan asked her if she was ok since she seemed a bit confused. Sullivan and the young couple were also slightly alarmed "You see, she fell off the stairs yesterday, hit her head pretty bad. And look at her now, all heeled up, I couldn't talk her out of not coming here today. She just wanted to give you guys a glimpse of what college life could turn out to be" Sullivan tried hard not to chuckle. _Oh yes, because you and I are the best examples of cool social college afterlife, Mr. my-date-is-my-AI-girlfriend._

She faked a smile "I'm fine, I'm fine, so are you guys going to join ESU? You still have a couple of months to apply" _Of course you won't, you're broke, the mortgage is due and you can't afford it. _There was that grim look again. _Oh, you hadn't told her yet, that's what's happening here. Poor kid, so alone. _She shook her head again, unnoticed by everyone but Peter. She half smiled at him. She felt sad for the guy "Nah, I don't think so." Gwen was shocked. _Yeap, she had no idea. _"What do you mean?" he didn't want to talk about it, especially not in front of complete strangers in nice suits. "I can't get a full scholarship Gwen, and Aunt May needs me. I'm taking that part time job I told you about" they nodded to the nice people from the college he'll never be able to afford and started walking away.

Stanny looked at her and whispered "Now right there, that was your window to offer him the goose that lays the golden eggs" _No, it was too soon. _She smiled at him "Your call, I'm not the one that-" Penny made him stop, Peter could be hearing them.

* * *

"When were you gonna tell me?" _She's mad. Mad's not good. _"We've been planning and talking and we started hanging out with college people!" _No, you started planning. _"Gwen, I- I- college isn't for me. I have too many things going on right now" She looked at him with disbelief. _Ok, I gotta do better than this. She seems really mad. Why don't girls come with instructions?_

"_Too many things? _Well, if you mean the - you know, well, maybe you can join, have real training. That'd get you a scholarship. If that's what you want. But Peter, you're amazingly smart, don't waste your life like this" _Is she really telling me to join the Marines? Me, a Marine? Maybe Navy, I could make my own hammock, he. Ok, not funny, I'm not giggling, we are having a serious talk. _

He could hear steps coming through the corridor, about to get to the girl's bathroom where they were talking. Heels, unfamiliar, not a school regular. Was she following them? _Ok, maybe she just needs to go. Gross. _"Someone's coming" he grabbed her and held her up on a bathroom stall, covering Gwen's face with his hand. She was too close not to kiss her. And probably that'd calm her down. _Ok, it didn't calm her down. Frak. _

Soon they heard the door swinging open and Dr. Morse's voice over the phone "Don't panic, I'll be there in a couple of hours and we'll order Chinese, okay? Relax. Yes, well, he works in the same building! What do you expect? Of course the boss wouldn't tell you he's there. Can you relax? You're hyperventilating in my good ear Hob. Ok, relax. Breath in, breath out. You can do this, c'mon, just think of it as flying. Love you too" when she clicked off her Bluetooth she looked herself in the mirror. The drugs were still around the light purple circles around her eyes. The cut started throbbing again. She took a deep breath while splashing her face with water.

When she looked up again, he was next to her. She was startled. _This can't be happening, it's the drugs, it's just the aftermath of the drugs_. She closed her eyes and opened them again and he was still there, grinning from ear to ear with his dark hair and mischievous look. She looked to her right and he was gone. _So now you're having visions too. About him. Great, your subconscious loves you._

The upside of the drugs' aftermath was that her senses were heightened. So heightened that she could feel agitated breathing on the first stall. And she could see a shadow bigger than one person on top of the toilet. "Who's there?"

She had an idea of who could it be, considering they were the only two hormone-packed youngster that took off from the hideous gym. "Guys, I know you're there, come out" Still nothing. So she did _the Fury thing_.

"You know you can get suspended by fooling around in the bathroom, right? Especially if you get caught by someone outside this faculty" she cleared her throat loudly, in an apparent menacing way. The door unlocked and Gwen came out. Penny lifted her eyebrow and started tapping the floor with her shoe. "I was just here Dr. Morse" they came closer to one another "Right, and your feet weren't in the ground while using the toilet because…" _Kid, please, I'm genius-level smart. And you're being plain stupid. _

"I was, um" Penny cleared her throat again "Peter, come out this minute" she managed to hit a nerve with her tone because he came out, looking more grim than before "Please Dr. Morse, we weren't-"

She loosened her posture and half smiled at them. No, not at them, at him. "Oh, I know all about this kind of twosome thing. I don't think anyone saw you come in so, why don't you come out right now and you manage to leave through that window there, I'll guard the door." The teens were shocked. "Oh, c'mon I was your age once. Chop chop"

Peter looked at her. "Thanks Dr. Morse" she smiled "Call me Penny. And you owe me a coffee"

* * *

**Peter *had* to be here. Not only Mockingbird and him are close friends and well, Andrew Garfield is so 3 3 3**


	12. Chapter 12: The Soldier

_**Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers or any related items.**_

* * *

**Chapter 12: The Soldier**

"C'mon Rogers, I could've killed you 3 times already. You need to strike harder than that!" Natasha was being as amicable as she could master during training. She was clearly still upset about whatever made her go over Penny's office but she wouldn't say a word, especially not after Clint joined them. "Cap. Tasha" she nodded and kept on practicing Kuo Shu with a very spirited Steve. It felt good to learn something new, something he could use. It felt good to feel like life was no longer in pause.

However after 10 minutes Steve felt something else. He had that familiar feeling of third wheeling, only this time, instead of being left out of chat about a guy in spandex, he was witness to a lover's quarrel. And not a pretty one by the look of Clint's bruised face. _They definitely fondue. This will be a problem. _

"Alright guys, I think it's time to go back to the board. What about Middle East?" Natasha let go of Clint and started chatting about the War on Terrorism and how regimes kept falling all over the place, and how SHIELD was always one step ahead. Eyes and ears everywhere. Agents everywhere.

"It must be hard for you two now, everyone knowing who you are…" Clint twitched a bit, maybe his neck was in slight pain, but he started playing with a Bo while talking anyway, "It was a mistake and now we're stuck here-" "babysitting me, I know." Natasha disregarding Steve's comment and Clint nudged her with his weapon. She was particularly upset about it. "That's not true. We are part of an elite team that handles Outer space threats, or Level 8 threats, not many can do that." She smiled at Steve "It's fun to kick alien's ass."

Clint snorted "I thought you liked dying your hair and pretending to be a stripper from time to time." She lifted her eyebrow to epic proportions and attempted to ignore his comment, continuing her talk with Steve. "We still have assignments; we just need to be more careful. Check not only for security feeds but for anyone with a phone with a camera." Steve half smiled and picked his phone. It was a text. So did Natasha. They looked at each other and then to Clint. He nodded but kept on playing with the bo.

Steve cleared his throat and stopped Clint from poking Natasha again, getting the bo out of his hand and throwing it to the floor. He used that familiar bossy tone of his "Let's go."

After Clint reluctantly started walking, Steve could've sworn he saw a smile on Natasha's face.

* * *

The conference room seemed colder than usual. In there they met Fury, Tony and Bruce, who seemed gloomier and more concerned than earlier that same day. He was no longer baring the amused smile he had when teasing him about Penny.

Lord, she looked like a Christmas' tree this morning. He needed to check who was on that room that affected her so. Could it be her boyfriend? A close friend? A relative maybe? It was definitely someone she cared about. Still, when she was drugged she praised his eyes. And on Friday she kept sitting closer to him and always wanted to include him in conversations. She challenged him but at the same time was there for him when he needed someone. He only hoped he could return the favor one day. Maybe he was reading too much into everything, maybe this was how males and females interact in the 21st century. Old rules no longer applied.

He looked around and everyone was getting their usual seats. No one seemed to be bothered about how cold the room felt. He shivered slightly. Maybe the temperature was different and he just needed to adjust. After all, this wasn't the training room. He cleared his throat and asked what the meeting was about. His head started pounding slightly and his ears felt clogged.

He couldn't help thinking how warm the training room felt against this one. And now his thoughts were right back to sparring with Penny. If old rules no longer applied and if they were just friends, if nothing else was going on, sparring with her should've been exactly like the session he had just had with Natasha, with her leg grips and all. But it wasn't. Natasha wouldn't look the other way when he was too near, Natasha's breathing didn't rise when he knocked her down to the floor, Natasha wouldn't tease him… Natasha wouldn't linger around him instead of going on with her chores and most definitely wouldn't blush at a compliment from him.

Still, maybe it was just him. Maybe his own feelings were making him see things where there weren't any. Feelings he realized he had when he felt her head on the curve of his neck and her slow breathing on his skin, when a sudden rush of anger came to his head when he read "husband" and saw Clint so desperate around her.

"Steve, you ok?" Bruce whispered to him, and he nodded. _No, I'm not okay, not at all. _

* * *

"Are you telling me that you had a biological threat and you didn't tell us?" Steve's heart was raising and he felt his face red, he wasn't feeling okay. He hadn't felt this in years… Tony looked down. Tony never looks down. They hadn't heard the worst part yet.

"Maya needed help and I helped her. I thought it'd end with getting the bad guy off the streets." He was admitting messing up? This was major. "It didn't. It was bigger than yourself and thanks to you not telling us this could be a worldwide problem, otherwise you wouldn't be here." Steve had to take a break. Stark wasn't replying with smirky comments, which could only mean one thing "What else are you not telling us?"

"I controlled the "threat", got the bad guy. Then I realized that I may have underestimated the guy's plan a bit" Steve thought of getting up but realized he was feeling too sick to move. "What's the main threat?" Cut to the chase. Know the target. Acquire intel. Get the target. Move on to the next assignment. _Keep it simple. _

Tony clicked his phone and information came on the main screen "Mandarin's HQ. Last night he kidnapped Maya and stolen the Extremis formula and I'm sure he's already pushing to get it viral." Steve took a deep breath "How much time do we have?"

Tony hesitated, Tony never hesitates. Bruce decided to speak "If they already have a viable formula it can take them 24-36 hours to turn it into a virus. I think we need Dr. Morse's skills on this one."

Clint nodded "We also need Hoban, he's specialized in Genetics. If this remaps the DNA, he's our guy." Steve looked at him "Hoban?" Tony decided to fill him in "Dr. Quinn's new henchman. Or boss. I don't know."

Natasha decided to speak "If they have Maya, does it mean she's working with them?" Tony disregarded her comment "Not a chance. She was kidnapped last night, I heard about it this morning." Natasha went on "Ok, let's say for the sake of argument that the kidnapping was staged. It's her formula, she can get it working in no time" Tony got more upset "Not possible. She wouldn't do that. Not in her character."

"She did use a person for her test trials." Tony cleared his throat "Yes but she wouldn't work with terrorists. She's funded by the Army, your best friends." Bruce didn't appreciate the remark.. Clint spoke again "They don't need her to cooperate, she can be forced to. Physically. Or with drugs. It's been known to happen." He looked briefly at Steve and then back to Stark "I don't think she'd break that easily."

Clint chuckled "Yeah, well, there are all kinds of fucked up people out there, I bet this Mandarin dude is one of them." he turned his gaze at Natasha, who seemed to clench her teeth "She can be forced to cooperate, but it'll take them at least 12 hours to try and break her down with threats and physically. If she doesn't as you say, then, well, they'll move on to drugs."

Steve decided to change the topic. This seemed to hit too close from home to everyone around the table: serums, army, genetics, drugs… "Do you have a sample? Anything our docs can work on?" Tony took something from his left pocket and slid it on the table, Steve missed catching it and Bruce caught it, doing a nervous laugh. "It's a thing we've been practicing. Anyway" Bruce was covering up for his lack of reflexes. Since they had been spending so much time together no one seemed to mind, except a jealous Tony.

Steve got his bossy tone and started planning with the team how they'd breach the HQ. "We leave in 4 hours, prep up" Bruce came closer to him "Not you Bruce, I think you better sit this one out. Help Penny and um, the other guy with this" The rest of the team started leaving the room and Bruce caught him by his arm "you're coming with me."

Steve looked puzzled. His ears were still a bit clogged and he wasn't feeling okay. He feared Bruce was upset for him pulling him off the team, but he had been picking up on Bruce's mood swings and he couldn't risk it. They took the stairs and Bruce checked Steve's neck and confirmed he had a fever. When he saw the camera on top of the stairs he started adjusting Steve's shirt collar. "You had it all turned up. I know how you worry about those things" Steve caught his eye and half smiled, he could see Bruce's worries on his eyes but he knew he wouldn't say them out loud.

"Thanks Bruce. No hard feelings about not coming with us today"? Bruce disregarded him with a wave of his arm "Don't worry about it. Gives me a chance to work with Penny on this." He realized that _this_ wasn't about Extremis, it was about him. Anyone besides them knowing about this would mean he'd be a lab rat 100% of the time. She was the only one person they could trust checking on Steve, and she was out.

Against all odds, the super soldier was sick.


	13. Chapter 13: Meanwhile in Queens

**Disclaimer: I don't own any Avengers, The green hornet or Battlestar Galactica (BSG). I'd love to hear what you think of the story so far! Don't be shy!**

* * *

**Chapter 13: Meanwhile, in Queens...**

_Well, things could be worse. I mean, the day is okay overall. Yeah, well, your girlfriend doesn't want to talk to you but, but you're buying coffee to Dr. Morse! THE Dr. Morse!_

_In my defense, I didn't think she'd be like this. I mean, cool. She's cool. Gwen will get it right? Ok, she's there. Be cool, be swell. You're not nervous. You're not nervous. _

_Oh, what a cool car. Looks taken from um, that movie with Seth Rogen. What was it? Darn it._

"Hi Peter" _And she smiles too. Dr. Morse is smiling at me. Or maybe at the coffee. Nah, I'm panicky, of course, I'm panicky, it shows and she's trying to calm me down. Frak, I didn't just throw coffee on her. _

"Oh frak!" she cleaned her black skirt. "Did you just say Oh Frak? I mean, I'm sorry Dr. Morse, I'm just… clumsy" _Idiot, you're an idiot. She just said Frak. She just said Frak. OMG she can't, OMG, has to be a coincidence._

"Don't worry about it." She frowned and touched her forehead. She seemed tired. "Like this car? It's Stanny's. He'd like to be Britt Reid. You know, from _Green hornet_" _Right, that was the name. Cool movie, based on radio shows. Ok, talk, you're talking to Dr. Morse. _

"You've been friends long? You seem friendly". She half smiled and explained they've been buddies since undergrad, both outsider geeks for different reasons. She was too young to be noticed by anyone, he was too deep into PCs to call anyone's attention. They met at the library; he helped her with some books in a high shelf. _Sounds like a movie. Wait a minute, are they in love? Wow, Dr. Morse with a geek. This is too much. And she said Frak. _

"So you're together? I mean, I don't mean to intrude" she chuckled, "No way! He's too full of himself. Deep down he's a good guy. And he can design great, and I mean _great_ toys but nah, no way" She moved and got dizzy and he caught her and her coffee, without spilling this time. _Oh crap, she didn't just notice that, she didn't just notice that. _

"Good catch Peter. Thanks. I think I should take an aspirin or something. Or maybe I need food, hadn't had lunch yet. Wanna grab a bite?" _Be cool. Be cool. _"Um, sure" she lead the way to a small green beetle. He opened the passenger's door and a bag was there. Colorful: yellow, red, blue and back to yellow. The Eye of Jupiter, the ultimate Battlestar Galactica symbol from the 2003 series. _Wow._

"Lords of Kobol, is this yours?" He grabbed the bag and she nodded "Frak yeah, kiddo, I made it" he was beaming at her. He sat on the passenger's seat and started talking about BSG and the characters and how the technology was entirely viable "I mean, we had aliens coming from the sky! New mutants come up with crazy stuff every week! It's only a matter of time until someone comes up with the FTL"* "Yeap, and what about that guy who swings from buildings and stops a frakking giant lizard ha!?" _Uh oh. Crap. Say something. Say something _"Yeah, crazy!"

"Well, if you apply for a scholarship maybe you are the one to come up with the FTL" She gave him an honest smile. _Yeah well, I need to get money for the mortgage and get a job and get Gwen on her good side and be Spiderman. _He sighed.

"Wanna talk about it?" he shook his head "Well, sometimes talking to a complete stranger helps" now she frowned. _What is going on with her?_

They spotted a little family restaurant and she stopped the car "How do you feel about ribs?" _What a weird question. _"Okay?" She beamed at him "Cool, cos I'm starving and they make the best ribs in the city, c'mon, grab my bag". _She looks… high. Is she high? Do they get high at that age? Wow. Ok, she's not that old. She's not old at all, oh shut up. _

After a while sitting down he got the nerve of asking how the cut happened "Oh you must think I'm high or something. Well you ain't wrong. And I've just used "ain't". Definitely high" He snorted and kept smiling at her "I've been working in this formula to stabilize – um a guy and I couldn't find the glitch and then a colleague-nah, a friend really, yes, my friend figured out what was wrong and he was going away so I got his info transferred to my pad and I was coming down the stairs with the comm and the Bluetooth and reading and totally missed this guy who was coming up the stairs and bang!" _Ok, she's awesome. _

"And you just hit your head and started acting funny?" She got serious all of the sudden "Not quite. I, um, I have this sort of allergy to a certain type of meds and the dick who was attending me didn't bother to read my med record so… well, I got a bit… _trippy_. It's wearing off now" _Why is she here? She should be resting _"You should be resting" she breathed in "Yeah, but, you know how they say, there's no rest for the wicked" there was the frown again. Something was bothering her.

He saw there was an opening for waiter and decided to come by later. He thought of changing the subject while they ate their ribs so he started talking about life and the mortgage and how Gwen was super excited about college and he was couldn't be anything but desperate on trying to figure out how to get enough money for the mortgage. She kept on nodding and asking questions, but not in an inquisitive way but more in a "Been there, done that" manner.

After a while she got a text that didn't say much but was enough to worry her "I'm sorry but I have to get going back to the office. Can I drop you off somewhere?" She was to drop him off near Gwen's home where he could change and do his rounds. She stopped the car in the corner. "Um, before you leave, there's um, you know all that pile of crap Stan said before? About why I came to the fair today and all"? _Uh-oh. If I knock her down and lock the car there's no way she can follow me. But it's a crowded street, anyone can see me. And she knows where I study. Hell, she knows everything. You're so stupid. _

"I work for SHIELD. I was meant to offer you a part-time job and a scholarship." _Was. You were here to set me up. _"And why didn't you?" she half smiled "I dunno" _What is she doing? She's playing you, that's what she's doing. Gods, these people know all about you! They even know about the paper you wrote!_

"You knew I liked your paper. That's why you're here." She frowned "Probably the guy who sent me here did. All I know is that you're very smart, have great reflexes and can design things in your basement" _Shit, buy time, buy time. What can you do? Really? What? _"So, what's the offer?"

"Part-time job in the science division along with people like Dr. Banner and me" he wasn't impressed. He had disappointment and betrayal written all over his face. "Dr. Banner turns into a big green guy. You may've seen him fighting aliens a year or so ago" Giving intel to a civilian was a bold move.

One that seemed to be working.

"You work with the Avengers?" She nodded with a timid smile. "Yup, I'm their main physician" he looked puzzled "I'm a doctor. I did that after biochemistry. I do both things in there. It's not that bad. I mean, nothing is 100% good or bad in any scale. I know you're a good guy but I bet there's something reckless you did that haunts you. We all have that" a flash of Uncle Ben bleeding to death got to his mind.

"How do you know I'm good?" She snorted "Someone with your… _talents_ could be a really shitty person. Steal, kill, go away to Virgin Islands or something. But nope, you're not like that. You stay here, standing up for the little guy, getting shot, risking college and your girlfriend to help your aunt. Not everyone does that Peter"

"What don't you know about me?" she had pouty lips and half a smirk "Um, you hadn't told me what your favorite BSG character is" he couldn't help grin at her. _Oh crap, you can't trust her man, you can't trust her. She's… c'mon!_ "I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours"

"Helo of course. He kicks ass and is truthful. Best friend Kara has. Great husband and father. Best XO in the fleet" He nodded in agreement. He was meant to move. He had to leave the car and think. He couldn't trust her but he couldn't help doing so.

Her phone kept vibrating in her pocket and she kept on ignoring it "Someone's calling you" She disregarded it "You hadn't told me your favorite yet" he looked right into her eyes. _This is a bad idea. You can't trust her. She's playing you. She's jedi mindtricking you. She probably had badass training and… frak it._

"I should go now" she grabbed a folder from her BSG-themed purse "All the stuff's in there. Read it. You can burn it or throw it away, whatever you choose" she grabbed a little card from her pocket and wrote something on the back "That's my phone. If you find yourself in trouble, bleeding or something, give me a call. I have the phone with me at all times. I'm good at patching up people in costumes. Please?" _Ok, don't fall for that. You can't fall for that. She's tricking you. She's luring you in with BSG stuff and niceties. And great ribs. Ok, she's nice. She doesn't have to give you her phone. Man, she's playing you! It's all part of the… No it's not. The folder is, her card isn't. She means well, she has to mean well. _

He grabbed the card and the folder and got off the car, closing the door with a particular loud noise, shattering the glass. "Hey Peter" he turned around fearing he'd have to pay for a glass he couldn't afford. "It was nice meeting you; call me if you need me, ok?"

He waved at her with the folder in his hand "Baltar, that's my favorite" she smiled and waved while driving away.

He looked at the folder and the card. Gwen's home was two steps away. She was probably in her room. He could come up and explain and they could over everything that just happened. He could climb in no time.

He put the folder in his backpack and started walking away slowly. He looked at the card, turned it around and saw Penny's handwriting. He couldn't help half smiling while he put it in his pocket. _Oh man, you're a goner._

* * *

**FTL:** Faster Than Light. It's the device used in BSG to make the ships travel at Faster than light speed.


	14. Chapter 14: The elephant in the room

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers.**

**I can't let this go. I know, I know, is not canon but... We have Clintasha everyyyywhere these days, so if Mocky is available why can't she give some love to Steve, right?**

* * *

**Chapter 14: The elephant in the room**

By the time Penny got to the office, Hoban was near a nervous breakdown. He explained how he was running tests on the subject sample and it was an incredible amount of data to process. She told him he could use Elinor, the AI dedicated to the medical officers to process the samples more quickly.

She took off her shoes and went to her office after waving at Bruce, who seemed concerned; she checked on him "Aren't you going with the guys?" He shook his head, "No, Steve wants me to stay and help you. And I agree" his tone stated a lot more than what was happening. He gestured to his ear and then did some eye thing pointing at his guard outside. She was a bit confused but was pretty sure this was code for something.

He took a deep frustrated breath and started writing in a post it, looking for the perfect angle not to be caught on camera. _Ohhhhhh _"Brandon, go radio silence" he half smiled "You have to explain what you're doing at some point you know" She smiled "At some point, yeap. What's up?"

He was taking his time. Whatever it was, it was big "Steve is sick". _Steve is sick. Steve can't be sick. He can't get sick. I mean, scratched, broken, yeah, but sick?_

"Define sick" Bruce explained what happened before.

"Get his ass here, shit I gotta take this call" she picked up and transferred the call to her desk phone. She placed Stark's and Romanoff's flasks in the sample reader and started working on her PC, getting the data from the samples "Hey you"

"How are you?! I've been calling all day for two days now Nell! I was dead worried!" she sighed

"I'm okay Tricia, I had a little fall yesterday and I've been packed with work, that's all. I'm really sorry" the young woman on the phone seemed upset.

"Some guy picked up the phone yesterday and explained you were "unavailable", he was very interested to know who I was" Penny took a deep breath "That was Clint probably. He got my phone fixed. What did you tell him?"

"Oh, Clint. Not much, just my name and to call me when you were okay"

"I'm okay. How's Zoey?"

Bruce called Steve to come quickly but stayed hovering around discussing with Hoban the possible threat and showing Penny screens with the data they had so far in a low tone.

She muted the phone and asked the AI to run tests and compare the latest blood samples with last months' and also setting them as Ground Zero for the bio threat exposure window.

The voice on the phone sounded young and cheerful "She's grown so much and is getting so pretty. You have to come see her!"

Hoban left to keep on running DNA scans using Elinor at his office. She un-muted the phone again "I really like to see her, feels like ages. And we gotta catch up!"

"Then come visit!" Penny took a deep breath and pretended to forget Bruce was right at his doorstep. "I will, soon. Weekend maybe? If I manage to skip work"

"About the weekend! Auntie wants you to come over for brunch"  
"Auntie- _Your_ aunt wants to see me? Since when?"

The voice cleared her throat "Well, you have a _lot_ in common and we're all family and you both love Zoey very much. You're family too and she wants to bond I guess" the voice made a pause "Look, she's old fashioned and I'm a single mom Nell, it's not what she dreamt for me"

Bruce then noticed that Penny's expression turned gloomy. "Things will look up Tricia, you'll see, I'm working on it"

"Well, I may have got a job, it's just a gig on Sunday but it's a start"

"That's great news! I wanna hear all about it." She heard a little knock on the door. Steve was standing next to Bruce, sharing odd looks "But I gotta run now."

The voice was understanding and very kind "See you Sunday then? You may need to look after her if I get this job"

"Count me in, can't wait to see the little one. You guys take care ok?"

"I will, miss you!"

"Miss you too. Bye" she hung up and looked at the guys. "Sorry about that, I just had to talk to her, she had that worried mommy tone"

Steve came nearer her and touched her forehead. "She wasn't the only one worried" Apparently he didn't care about propriety when he had a fever. "I'm fine, I'm fine" Bruce repressed a smile at Steve's gesture and decided to test a theory "So, was that your… _partner_?"

Both Steve and Penny looked at him puzzled "What? As in… Oh. No Bruce, I don't play for that team! She's a friend that's all. Oh c'mon, you really get a gay vibe around me?" Bruce couldn't help but repressed a laugh considering the way Steve and her were lingering around each other "Well, no, but you seem _close_"

"We are. We've been friends for some time now and she's a single mom. Her daughter (she showed them her iPhone background picture) is only 6 months. She moved to NY not a year ago so" Steve was a bit drowsy but was still following "and what about the baby's father? He took off?"

And that's when Penny's expression changed to something Steve had never seen before. She took off the phone from his hand in a moved away showing distress "God no. He'd never do that." Steve felt he needed to apologize and Bruce came nearer them since she seemed clearly upset "He was going to see her and… there was this… robbery and the idiot started fighting someone stronger than him, and well… he…"

Bruce and Steve brushed her back in a comforting way "I'm sorry, I just assumed"- Penny was still mad at him "You assumed wrong. He's a great guy. He, he helped me a lot while growing up and when all that happened I looked for her, and she was expecting Zoe and I couldn't leave her alone, I owed him that"

Steve brushed her arm and left his hand there "I'm really sorry Penn" she looked at his hand and then at him. "You're boiling. Brandon, Patient confidentiality protocol" Bruce took off to his own desk restraining a proud smile and left them alone.

She closed the door and led the way to the back of the office where the stretcher was concealed behind three screens "You don't look too good"

"You look great, as always" She half smiled and felt a blush coming to her cheeks "Was that a compliment? That's two in one day Rogers, I may get used to it" she came nearer him and kissed his forehead to check his temperature. He accidentally took a tiny peek inside her blouse and then blushed at the thoughts he was having "What was that for doc?"

He couldn't keep those thoughts of his head. Unbuttoning her blouse, kissing her neck slowly, feeling her skin against his. He cleared his throat.

"It's an old grandma thing. You can tell if someone has a fever like that. What else do you feel? When did it start?" She looked worried, dead worried, but not trying to show it. He explained that it started a few hours ago and that he had to take off in 2 hours with the rest of the team otherwise "Everyone'll know something's wrong and then" "-Lab rat, I know. Don't worry. I'll fill you up with meds, but you need to come in the moment you're back. I need to leave you in observation" All alone, just the two of them. Not ideal but it could work.

He may get the nerve to ask her out, or not. This was ridiculous.

"Observation? But I-" She smiled at him "We'll figure something out, don't worry. Here" she handed over the thermometer. Then she started giving info to Brandon, who kept answering and greeting Steve. He was quite excited to be able to show himself to someone new.

"How are you feeling Penny? How's that?" he moved his hand to her scar again, brushing the stitches and her cheek slowly with his fingers. He felt her holding her breath and could've sworn she looked at his lips for a second "I'm okay, I'm fine. I got a bit trippy today but it's okay"

"I was worried yesterday. You were…" she was going through the medicine cabinet next to the stretcher and stood on dry. She still couldn't remember much of the previous day, only that he was there. "I'm so sorry about yesterday Rogers." She got some pills and left them next to him.

"Oh, don't be, you were very sweet" _Sweet. That's not good. I can't be sweet. _She looked puzzled.

"You don't remember anything, do you?" She gazed at him while checking his temperature. 101.3 degrees. An infection, anything could be causing it. But why was _he_ getting it? Why now?

"Okay, so, I'm gonna get a bit of blood to see what's causing your fever, okay?" He was concerned that people would realize but then she explained they need samples from everyone as ground zero for bio threat procedures. "Was I… weird yesterday?"

She got the needle in his arm and he twitched a bit "I'm sorry" he looked up "No more than usual" he couldn't help a mischievous laugh and she mocked hit him in his shoulder while half smiling "Jerk"

"You seemed… happy. Do you remember any of it?" She took the needle of his arm and asked him to push the little cotton against the puncture. While setting up his blood flask in the sample reader she answered "I remember Clint being there and you being there, and then… I hugged Bruce? Why would I hug Bruce? And then I was" she looked around "I think I was sitting on that couch. But then I was at a beach and it was sunset, it was very soothing and warm" he couldn't help beaming at her "Was it?" _Uh oh._

"What's so funny about that?" he repressed the smile. His head hurt a bit "You mentioned a beach, and sunset I think." She raised her eyebrow but he frowned, his ears felt clogged. She checked his ears, throat, nose, lungs. And then she heard his heart. She held the stethoscope and looked at his eyes. He could see her concern. She pushed the stethoscope closer to her ears and held it with her whole hand against his chest, trying to improve the sound. Her warm hand in his chest only drew him closer to her. When she realized she could feel his breath near her skin she moved away.

"What is it?" She faked a half smile. "Nothing, I was just checking how everything was. I think you have a cold" she placed the stethoscope over her neck and tried to look away but he grabbed her by her arm and brought her closer to him.

"Penny, please" He just looked at her "It's nothing, really" then she dropped the smile "You've been out in the last few days, you were bound to get a cold, it's winter outside"

"Now the truth please?" she went through the drug cabinet again and got a new needle, filled it up with some medicine and stabbed his arm with it. His eyes were still fixed on her "You smell like coffee" now her eyes were fixed on his. "I have no idea what's happening Steve"

She took the needle off and threw it to the trash, and moved back to face him. She was going to say something else, but Hill burst in.

"I'm sorry, you can't be here, I'm with a patient." Penny crossed her arms and got between Hill and a sitting down Steve. "I thought we had an understanding Dr. Morse"

Suddenly, someone else was behind Agent Hill. "I'm sorry, who are you?" She turned around and saw Dr. Hoban, "Who are _you_?" If there was one thing Alan didn't like, that was rudeness.

"I'm Dr. Hoban, the new Lead MD. Please come this way" he moved his arms pointing towards the door while Penny restrained a smile. "I'm Agent Hill. Now Dr. Morse-"

"Dr. Morse is with a _patient_. I'm going to have to ask you to leave now." He stood still trying to seem taller than what he was, and more serious. The Hawaiian shirt under his robe didn't help. "You don't understand, she"-

"I think you don't understand, please come this way." He shut the door behind them winking at the pair inside. Penny exhaled loudly "He just made an enemy right there" Steve felt that sudden rush of anger again, the same he felt when he read "_husband"_ the night before "So that's Dr. Hoban?"

"Yeap, and he reports directly to Fury. I'm prrreetty sure your girlfriend there doesn't know that little detail" she handed over the pills she took from the cabinet.

"My what?" She snorted "Take one of this in 3 hours if you still feel drowsy" he was clenching his teeth at her previous comment. She tried to repress a laugh.

"Oh c'mon, that chick wants you _so _badly" he frowned "Hill?" Penny nodded "She hovers around you every chance she gets. I bet she's your liaison and will want to liaise with you in no time" he scorned at her "That was subtle for _make a move on you_"

He was angry at her for thinking that but at the same time she was still too close and he couldn't help thinking how much he'd like to be somewhere else with her. Maybe ask her out. Dinner and a movie, maybe even stealing a kiss from her while walking her home.

_No, things don't work like that anymore. _

Penny misread his awkward silence "OMG she has hit on you already and you never told me? Are you sleeping with her?" She was standing in front of him and wouldn't let him move.

"Lord No Penny! She's a bully, and very rude with anyone under her" Penny chuckled "You know, I could make at least 5 different sex jokes with what you've just said, but I'll take the higher ground. You're all set."

He got up inches from her and they both started acting awkward around each other, lingering there. "Well, thanks Dr. Bobbi" She went pale "Oh my God, what else did I tell you?" He pat her shoulder in a mocking way. "Something about going to college at 14, but I guess we'll need to leave that for another time"

Dr. Hoban came into the room "What a _kwong-juh duh_!" Penny started giggling at Alan's comment. "We're in the US Hobbie, English only. Captain Rogers, let me introduce you to our new Lead MD, Dr. Alan Hoban, AKA my partner in crime"

Alan came nearer him and they shook hands "It's an honor to meet you Captain Rogers" Steve nodded "Nice to meet you Doctor. Agent Hill is a bit of a-" Penny interrupted "a bitch Hob, thanks for keeping her out".

The doctors shared a smile "No problem birdie" She was beaming at the sight of her friend "I am SO glad that you're here!" She hugged Alan while saying _Thank you_ and Steve started walking to the door.

"Remember to come back later" She smiled at him, but he didn't smile back.

"I'll see what I can do. Thanks Dr. Morse, Dr. Hoban" and he stormed away. She looked at him walk away through the glass office and met Bruce's eyes since he was staring at them.

"What's the quarterback's problem anyway?" she sighed "I don't know, don't' call him that!"

She looked at Bruce again, who was pretending not to be looking at them. When he looked up, she was right next to him "What was all that about?" he was staring firmly at his screen.

"You know I'm one of the very few people in this building that can tell that what's on your screen right now is pure gibberish, right?"

Bruce turned around smiling taking off his glasses and started cleaning them with this sleeve. "What do you need Penny?"

"Why did he leave like that?"

"Well, I'm no expert but I guess you hugging your… friend there, I _guess_ he wanted to leave you guys alone. You know how he is"

"My… "friend"? He's, he's Hobbie! There's nothing going on there. We were stationed together in China, he was my doctor when… We're friends, that's all!"

"Have you noticed how much you explain yourself when someone asks you about relationships? I mean, I'm not sure how you are with other people but with us…"

"What is that supposed to mean?" He kept cleaning his glasses "I think you want to make sure that no one thinks that you're with someone."

"Aha… because I'm not"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I'm not."

"And there's no one you'd like to be with…?"

"No, my work is the most important thing for me right now. Where is all this coming from?"

"I don't know, I just think you may be interested in someone" He raised both of his eyebrows and moved them like a cartoon character.

"Really? Really. You are going there. You just went there. I am not interested in you. Or him. At all. C'mon, we're science buddies. Well, we're science buddies when _your boyfriend Tony_ isn't here. And Steve is… Steve. He's Captain Nice guy. He's just… Steve."

"Exactly. Steve. The nice guy. I see no reason why you or _anyone_ would feel attracted to him. Good God!" He put his glasses back on and resumed staring at the screen.

"I can't believe you just did that. It's so NOT true. Not true. Not true. Not talking to you today."

"Good, cos I got work to do."


	15. Chapter 15: Adding fuel to the fire

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers. **

**Would love to hear what you got to say!**

* * *

**Chapter 15: Adding fuel to the fire**

Alan was having the longest and most stressful first day of work ever known to humankind. Fury's eye was fixated on his Hawaiian shirt instead of his screen. He knew he could be more comfortable here than out in undercover ops and he couldn't afford to screw this one up.

"What do we know so far Dr. Hoban?" Bruce was there as well. Alan was slightly scared of this seemingly harmless scientist. He'd seen what _the other guy_ was capable of doing and couldn't help trying to be extra nice to him which, he noticed, had the opposite effect on Banner.

"This is advanced nanotechnology. For what I could figure out so far is telling the brain how to recreate organs from scratch. Must've taken years to develop this kind of mapping. In theory it can be the solution for every person needing a transplant"

"But?"

"As far as _we_ know it was only tested in one person. It may have been a happy coincidence, for what I could've figured out so far is responding to a specific gene type"

"English?"

"It may not work on large scale. I'd need to recreate it and test it with other blood samples, other gene combinations" Fury nodded to both and took off. "You want to test it on other people?"

"No, I just wanted clearance for genetic testing. We'll recreate it with the AI. Maybe it could help your… condition" Bruce sighed "We'll see. What's with Penny?"

"Oh well, she hasn't left her office since she talked to you. If I know those puckered brows, you may want to avoid going in there for a while. Oh _great_." Bruce turned around to check what Alan had just seen. A guy that's a regular in the training room. Average height, large back, brunette, big smile, _Charming_. One of the fake-Captain Americas.

Alan got back to his office and turned around "Dr. Banner, could you let me know when Stark is around? I'm gonna need a new sample from him" Bruce frowned "The one he sent before? Old. Has the exact same values than the last one we had analyzed."

"You don't think…?"

"I hope not" Bruce nodded and stayed around working in his pad and looking at Penny's office from time to time. She seemed to know this guy, to be comfortable around him. Goofy but not flirty. He hoped Steve wouldn't show up, because he was pretty sure he wouldn't be able to tell the difference.

He went back to his own screen. His stats weren't good, he was losing control more and more often and the cocktails they've been trying weren't working. He went back to his own formula, the one that could hopefully keep _the other guy_ at bay. But what if he couldn't? What if the other guy was more powerful than him _inside?_ What about all his anger? His rage? That was his and his alone. Yes, he was better at aiming it, but it was still there, waiting to make a mess out of everything. His heart rate monitor wrist started beeping. He needed to calm down, he couldn't get agitated by just thinking about this.

Penny knocked on their shared glass wall and curved her eyebrow while doing thumb up/down with her right hand. She seemed to have very good hearing today. Or his heart rate wrist band was beeping somewhere in her office. Maybe the PC, or whomever was on the other side of her Bluetooth at all times was monitoring him.

He did a thumbs up, to which she nodded and went back to paying attention to the guy in front of her. "So you're filling in for Bruce?"

The guy nodded. "So, I wanted to talk to you about something"

"No way"

"C'mon birdie"

"You're not gonna "birdie" yourself out of this one Mister. Give me your arm, c'mon" she took his little flask of blood and set it with the rest. She started reading from her screen. "Don't get shot out there, okay?"

He half smiled "You think someone would care?"

"Oh yes, definitely." The loud noises coming from the elevator could only mean one thing: Stark was back to get his suit. But Hoban got in his way.

"Doctor, I already told you, call my assistant for an autograph"

"I need another blood sample Stark" She lifted and eyebrow and both her and the guy got out off her office to back Hoban up. Stark had a humorous look upon him "Please, didn't Little Miss Sunshine already leave mine earlier?"

"It's old. I need a new one."

"Well, I'm short of time. Got a date with bad guys! Excuse me" Hoban stopped him "Blood first, suit second" Stark admired his bravery but thought of it foolish. He _was_ Iron Man, suit or not suit.

"I don't think the Cap'd be happy if I'm late."

"I'm sure Rogers won't have a problem Tony, c'mon, give them the sample" Bruce trying to intervene, as always.

"You're taking his side? I thought I meant something to you" Mark and Penny shared a look and then looked at Hoban. He was too close to snapping. 3, 2, 1.

"Ok, that's it. I've had a really long and stressful first day at work and I don't care who you think you are, I need your blood sample. Are you going to cooperate or will we have to do this the hard way?"

Bruce repressed a giggle when he realized no one else found it funny. "C'mon doc, relax. Want me to get you a drink? Fury has a really good stock in his office. My treat" Hoban was dead serious "You won't leave the premises until I get that sample Stark" He looked passed Hoban to Penny.

"Ok, then. Blondie, go tell Fury he's one Iron Man short for the operation" she always appreciated an opportunity to make him feel… well, _common. _

"No problem, he has Lt. Rhodes' number on speed dial. Sure Air Force support will be of great help" She was wearing those evil heels again, clearly. She came a bit closer to Hoban and Tony, "I need a drink, excuse me doctors"

Tony attempted to walk away but found himself face down with his arms on his back and a pounding pain in his left eyebrow from the fall. Hoban's weight was holding him down "For the record, I asked nicely" he took a syringe from his pocket and asked Penny to help holding Stark's arm down while he got the sample. "There, Want a candy?"

"Make it a double" Alan tossed the flask to Penny who half smiled at his boldness, then he extended his hand to help Tony up and he accepted it. "You need to teach me what you just did there. I'd like to try it on Romanoff later" Hoban was back to being a fan girl "Dr. Wyatt had a pretty good stock here too, come this way Tony. Is it okay if I call you Tony?"

Stark looked at Penny "I like this guy already" and then disappeared into his office at the corner.

Mark whispered in her ear "Lucky bastard" but she wasn't impressed, quite the contrary. She didn't realize she was being too loud "You had your chance and blew it. Now zip it. Talk to the hand" something in her ear called her attention "Say that again"

"I need your help to fix this!" she looked at him annoyed "Not you Mark! Can you get Romanoff here please?" He nodded and took off. He knew how to pick his fights.

She talked slowly to her ear piece "Are you sure?" Brandon's voice took her whispering tone "Yes Dr. P, I run them twice"

When she was going back into her office, she saw Steve near the elevators on the other side. No idea how long he'd been there but he was walking away. "Send them to the Pad, delete them from the main database"

"Wouldn't that be against regulations Dr. P?"

"So are you Brandon, please do it"

* * *

She managed to catch up with Steve's pace near the stairs "Hey you! What is it? Are you feeling worse?"

"No, I'm better. I didn't want to bother you when you're with your… friend."

"You with the pauses too._ What's going on?_" He clenched his teeth and looked at her. That anger kept multiplying. He wonder if Bruce's condition could be contagious all of the sudden. "You just seem to be friendly with a lot of people lately"

"A lot? A lot? That's just Mark, we were in training together back in the day. _What is it?_" he had dark circles around his blue eyes. She grabbed him by the arm and moved closer to the backstairs "You can tell me what's bugging you, c'mon, we're friends"

He got his arm loosen from hers "Are we now?" She looked at him with an unreadable expression "Are you _jealous_ of him? Is that it?"

"You keep saying you're my friend but until last night I had NO idea you and Barton were married. That's important, don't you think?"

"Divorced. We're divorced" She was going to keep on explaining but he raised his voice and kept on ranting, way too loud for it to be a private talk anymore "Furthermore, You were held captive? Ever cared to mention that? Or that you can't take certain medication because they make you seizure and go into a comma!?" She stood on dry and took a step back from him.

"Sure, it's a great conversation starter. You know what? Bruce is right. I explain myself too much around you two. Fuck this. Have a nice day Captain Asshole, don't let the door hit you on the way out!"

She stormed to her office and shaded all the glass walls, including the shared one with Bruce.

Bruce and Steve shared a look from the distance. He was feeling guilty and angry and Bruce's looks weren't helping. He took off through the stairs, and loud _thuds _against the stairs' walls made it clear he was as mad as she seemed.

Tony pored more whisky in his glass "That went well I think"

Bruce headed to her office but Alan stopped him "Don't. Give her some time" Her door opened again soon enough and she stormed off, eyes reddened, ignoring them entirely.

Stark took a deep breath and pointed at the stairs and Penny's office while holding the glass "How long has been this going on?" Bruce tried and played dumb looking away and cleaning his glasses with his sleeve.

"Oh, I see. You have new playmates. Fine, be that way. I'll figure it out"


	16. Chapter 16: Bad moon rising

**Thanks for keep on reading! I'd love to hear what you think of the story so far. Don't be shy and leave Reviews!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers, nor Creedence Clearwater Revival's song.**

**PS: The angst is finally here. Be warned.**

* * *

**Bad moon rising**

Natasha was generally comfortable anywhere. She was trained that way, settling for little, enjoying at large. One of the few things that made her feel most at ease wherever part of the world she was in was sunset. No matter if it was a beach, a forest or the top of the SHIELD building, seeing the sun setting in the horizon calmed her inner voices. All of them.

She was in Clint's nest, the whole city at her feet. The sun was there, tilting the grey city slowly into shades of orange and light yellow. Soon it'll be time to go. She took deep breaths, trying to take in the little sun there was left. The voices weren't quieting down. They were screaming from the top of their lungs, all inside her rib cage.

She felt the tears in the back of her eyes. She _wasn't_ the weeping type.

She wasn't the desperate for affection kind or the one to make scenes. That was for unsecure women and teenagers. She was a grown woman, a spy, a former assassin. She was stronger than this.

So why was she giving a damn about the stupid video circulating everywhere? Clint was just being Clint, taking advantage of a situation to make fun of it. Grabbing her ex-wife's ass when she had just fallen off the stairs was utterly normal to his standards.

It wasn't that. It was everything else.

It was their closeness, their secrecy. It was how they still looked at each other longingly at times. Their divorce papers had been signed years ago, but the feelings were still there. She dried a tear _"Chyort voz'mi!"_

He had saved her life, saved her from her former employees, from her former training, from herself even. He had given her another shot at life and the chance to share it with him. And for that she was grateful. It was a clean slate _for both of them_, and she just wasn't sure how much more of his invading past she could cope with.

She didn't even know why she was asking herself these questions. They were very unlike her. She was _Natasha Romanoff._ She ate marks for breakfast. She divided and conquered. She beat the God of Trickery and Mischief on his own turf for crying out loud. She remembered that interrogation all too well. She was keeping her head straight, the facts, she was acting. It was all an act to get him to talk. She even meant back then that _Love is for children._

But now it hurt like a bitch.

She ordered herself to pack those feelings away. They were pointless, unnecessary and out of her character. Whatever was happening to her, had to stop. She had an op in 20 minutes, she had to check in. She had to walk away from the sunset and leave all these feelings on the rooftop. Right, she had to move. _Move._

A familiar voice in her ear startled her "We need you at the bay in 20 minutes agent Romanoff." She took a deep breath and kept on staring at the orange sun setting in.

Steve's tone sounded clogged through the ear piece, she probably needed to change it before leaving. "Romanoff, are you there?" She sighed again and cleared her throat "I'll be there in time cap-, Sir"

Why couldn't she just keep it together? She wasn't just upset about the video. She wasn't the jealous type. She wasn't upset about Clint, no. It wasn't even about the obvious feelings he and his ex wife held for one another. No, it was all her. Penelope Morse.

What a _ridiculous_ name.

Her suspicions towards Dr. Morse were based solely on facts, on her tails. She was missing proof, evidence. Anything that she could take upstairs and would help her demonstrate her point. But so far she had nothing, and that drove her mad.

The blond covered her tracks smoothly. She was always one step ahead of her, always predicting what she'd do next, what she'd check next. The little intel she was able to get from her office and the cams there wasn't much. She was smooth, and she had help all over.

Natasha kept on cursing at herself. She was a master in reading people and getting their intentions, so why couldn't she figure out what a 5'8" blond with a fake demure attitude was really doing? And what's worst, why was she letting the blond get to her.

She wasn't the angry type, she was always cool headed. It was necessary in her line of work. Getting mad was not an option in the field. Getting mad gets you killed. She had seen many go that road and she wasn't going to make their same mistakes.

This wasn't a competition either. She was beyond competing. She came in, kicked ass, left an impression, and took off. That was it, that's how Natasha rolled... until Morse came back and got an office on the 10th floor.

Morse slowly started taking a place in Natasha'steam, with her shy act and fake modest tone won Steve and Bruce over in a rather short period of time. _The weak links_ of course. And she had Clint by the balls.

Ok, he was his wife. _Ex wife._ Still, he was a dick when Morse was around. He lied to her. He didn't fill her in on what was going on. She knew Clint knew something. He had figured something out. And he wouldn't let her into the secret. "We all have secrets Tash" _Sure we do. But we don't keep secrets, not after so much time together._

The only that had been proved a roadblock for the blond was Stark. Natasha half smiled. She never thought Stark could be an asset, an ally in her quest for clarity, but he just may.

_I should've killed her when I had the chance._

The sun was almost gone; she needed to get to the bay fast. She heard the metal door of the rooftop behind her. Then his aftershave travelled to her nose. She started getting up but her surroundings were suddenly zooming away from her "Shit!" He rushed and grabbed her "You ok Tash?"

Before she could answer the door squeaked again. _Fucking great._

The heels rushed to her and grabbed her wrist, checking her pulse "Can you walk?" They measured each other.

"I'm perfectly fine. Gotta go now" Morse stood still, shoulders back, hands on the sides, then on her pockets. She was trying to seem in control of herself.

"You can't go" _The hell I can._

Morse looked at Clint and then at her "Clint, you need to get to the bay. You, come with me" Morse started walking to the door and they followed.

"I'm going to the bay Dr. Morse" Natasha wasn't about to argue with her. Not right now. Not when she was so angry and frustrated. She needed to take off and kick someone's ass. It was the only way she had found to control herself lately.

Morse swallowed slowly and stood very still, very tall, 4" taller than herself, probably more with her heels. "Agent Barton, report to Captain Rogers and tell him he'll need a replacement for agent Romanoff. She doesn't have medical clearance to leave."

Natasha looked at him with a _don't you dare_ look, but Morse was too serious to be joking. There she was, making up some cooked up story about Natasha being sick and he was buying right in on it. Morse had a tail when she was lying; she just needed to look at her long enough to pick on it. Her eyes were reddened. Had she been crying?

Clint looked away from Natasha and into Morse's eyes. "Does it look like I'm joking Barton? _Go_" He nodded and let go off Romanoff, leaving them alone in the rooftop. He was definitely going to sleep in his bunk tonight. _Alone._

* * *

There was a lot of anger coming from Natasha, and Penny wasn't at her finest moment either. This was bound to escalate quickly…

But Penny had to be the adult. Whether they wanted to or not, she was Natasha's doctor now, and there was a health issue.

Natasha started to take off towards the stairs when Penny started talking "Have you been getting dizzy often?" Natasha slowed down "Feeling more emotional than usual? Throwing up and then tasting metal in your mouth?" Natasha could feel Penny right behind her. She turned around "What are you talking about?"

Penny stared "You know"

Natasha was puzzled, let herself go for a second "It can't be" It didn't make sense, it couldn't be.

Penny took a deep breath, but her posture made it clear she wasn't letting it go "Ok, when was the last time you got your period agent Romanoff?"

"This morning" Her answer was automatic, was it a lie? Her pupils were normal.

"And before that?"

Natasha shook her head denying what Penny was trying to imply "In time. I take pills. You should be aware of that. It's-"

"It's on your file. I've read it. I also read that you had severe stomach flu and that Dr. Wyatt changed your prescription pills over 2 months ago. Did you have unsafe sex during that period Agent Romanoff? Didn't Dr. Wyatt warn you about the hormonal change and the unsafely window it brought up?" Natasha couldn't believe this woman. She couldn't believe her detached tone either. Her tone didn't add up to her eyes. "God, how the hell did that guy got his MD?"

Why was Morse trying to get her off the op? Was something going to happen and the blond wanted to keep her grounded? She needed to run, she wasn't going to be late to take off due to her lunacies "I got. My. Period. This morning."

"Yet your tests results show positive for the HCG hormone. And you're anemic, it's very common in your condition." Penny paused and looked straight into Natasha's eyes "You're 7 weeks pregnant, there is NO way I'm letting you go on that op."

Penny's com clicked "Dr. Morse, get agent Romanoff to the bay"

"Sir, you'll have to make do without her. She doesn't have medical clearance." Natasha knew that Penny only called "Sir" to one person. She was off the hook. Fury would take care of Morse.

"Both of you in the bay in 10 minutes" the com went off.

Natasha half smiled and started walking away. "Wait Natasha! If you're so _sure_ you got your period this morning, then something else could be happening. You could be having a miscarriage, or have a rupture. I can't guarantee your safety unless I run more tests on you! You need to rest."

She was getting on her nerves. She was calling her by her name now? Not A. Chance. "Don't call me that"

Natasha started rushing through the stairs, with Penny on her tail "You think I _like_ this Romanoff? Giving _you_ of all people, this piece of news? I don't. But I'm your doctor. And I can't let you go on this mission. It's not safe."

They reached the bay floor when Natasha decided to look at her. Penny kept on babbling at her "I'm talking about a major safety risk. What if you faint? What if you get dizzy? If you start throwing up? What if you start bleeding internally due to 1 on 1 combat when you're supposed to be watching their backs? You'll be risking them as well; it's not just about you. It's not ok for you to go and you know I'm right on this one"

Natasha stared at her. Pupils, pulse. She was agitated for the run on the stairs. But Morse's tail wasn't there. She wasn't lying. This was real. This couldn't be real, she did get her period this morning. And she had been training with Steve as well, she would've… she would've noticed if something was wrong "I'm fine. I'm going. Period."

Before she could open the floor door, Penny pushed the door closed and talked inches from her "Cameras. Here." She handed a little stick while shaking her hand. "If you're so sure, pee on that stick"

Natasha took a deep look at Penny's eyes, trying to read her reasons behind this one more time. Trying to pick up on anything the doctor was concealing.

Nothing.

She seemed genuinely concerned.

Natasha had been more emotional lately, she was very aware of that. She looked at the concealed stick and then shook her head.

No, this is exactly what Morse wanted; she wanted to confuse Natasha in order to get her off her trail.

They looked at each other one last time "If I do this, I get you off my back?" Penny nodded and opened the door for her "After you"

* * *

They didn't make it to the bathroom. Fury was standing in the middle of the corridor. "Follow me"

"Sir, we c-"

"Dr. Morse, just walk"

Romanoff hid the little stick up her sleeve and looked at her. They reached the Quinjet and most of her patients were there, suited up. Even Stark was in the crowd, plus Mark in a SWAT suit. He nodded at her and gave him a cheering smile. Clint moved closer to the door "Are you coming? But-"

Natasha disregarded Clint and grabbed Steve's hand to climb to the aircraft, which caused a little twitch on Dr. Morse's countenance.

Penny started talking to Steve and Fury "She can't go, she doesn't have med clearance"

Fury sighed heavily. Steve's eyes looked glassy and she was sure he was restraining from speaking due to a sore throat. "What does agent Romanoff have Dr Morse?"

The ladies looked at each other "There's something called doctor-patient confidentiality Director. Even in SHIELD"

Fury cleared his throat and looked at Natasha, who had sat between Mark and Stark of all people "How are you feeling agent Romanoff?"

"Ready to kick some wacko's ass Sir" she adjusted her seat belt tight and crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"That's my girl, high five. Oh, repulsor beams, better not" Despite Stark's attempts to lighten the mood, everyone was dead serious.

Clint kept looking back and forth at his girl's stares. And so did Steve. Penny kept on insisting she shouldn't go, to no avail.

Natasha spoke again, with mild contempt on her voice. She wasn't sure if she was setting a trap or if she was falling right into one, but she was too pissed to care "You'd sure like to be sitting on this aircraft, wouldn't you?" Tony restrained the _Oh dear_ comment.

"No, I'm trying to save your life Natasha. That's what I do." Clint picked on the first name basis; Penny would never call her Natasha. Not unless she was leveling with her, not unless this was dead serious.

Fury intervened, since no one else dared "If you don't give us details and if agent Romanoff feels up to the task, I'm overruling your decision"

"You can't do that"

"He just did" Penny gave Stark a furious look. He decided to keep quiet afterwards.

"I need to run further tests on her! She's anemic; she's been feeling sick for weeks now. She is not ok! She can't go; it's not safe for her out there! She can faint, or start bleeding, she may get confused or panicky. Fury don't-" she quieted down.

"And unless you tell me why, she's going."

She looked at Natasha and thought of telling them. But there was the doctor-patient confidentiality. And there was also the big chance that Natasha had a natural miscarriage earlier in the day. Saying she was pregnant out loud would bring more complications than solutions. She could finally level up with Romanoff, if Natasha could only see that she was trying to help her.

Steve was the one that brought her back from her thoughts "Dr. Morse? We need to take off. Is there anything you want to share?"

She looked away from Natasha, brushed over the entire team and set her eyes on Fury, ignoring it was Steve the one who asked. Her posture changed. They wouldn't get anything from her.

"I don't know what she has. It could be one of several things. I need to run further tests. She needs to be grounded and rest."

Fury looked at her disappointed. "She's going then. Save flight team." He started moving away from the Quinjet as the engines started purring.

"You're frakking unbelievable Fury… Overrule a medical call. Get them all killed. Hey, what do I know? I'm just their doctor, right?" She got her earpiece off and threw it to Fury's chest, storming out of the bay as they took off.

Clint and Steve looked at each other. They were on their way to a major security threat, but what would be waiting for them when they came back could be much, much worse.


	17. Chapter 17: Aftermath

**Corrected a few things here and there and added the last part. Enjoy and dont be shy, leave comments!**

* * *

"Briefing is in 30 minutes, you better hurry" Stark's drowsy tone after his fourth round was getting on everyone's nerves.

Feeding him with whiskey was the only way Hobbie had to keep Stark nested between his office and Bruce's. Tony was the only one seeming to be in good shape after the op.

Mark had had a bad fall, Clint had got ricochet in his arm while covering Natasha and she came back with a spring ankle and a few bruises.

As of Steve... As usual he had stayed at the front, air covered by Stark and with Clint and Romanoff in the rearguard. Judging by the state of his suit and the extensive cuts and grazes in his back, it was clear they didn't do a good job at some point. If Bruce was to miss other ops, they'd need more agents on the team.

"Rogers, come on in" Between the flu, the op and the flight home the captain's energy seemed to have drifted away.

Penny closed the door, asked Brandon to start the Patient confidentiality protocol and then starting cutting Steve out of his upper suit. His grazes and cuts looked bad and some were deep. A small cut on his cheek only made him seem more battered. "I can't believe you didn't take cover. You're sick Rogers, you could've died."

They had failed to catch Mandarin or rescue Mara, and though they were able to gather samples and get a CDC team in, the operation hadn't been a success. He was too tired and was too hurt, but he would've wanted to get patched up and follow new leads. The threat was still out there.

Penny's soft hands holding her stethoscope over his heart brought him back to reality. He just wanted to lean on her, breath her in and rest. He just needed some peace and quiet right now and she always gave him peace of mind.

But she wouldn't now. His mind wasn't as clouded as before and he remembered everything he said and implied before leaving. Penny sighed hanging her stethoscope back around her neck. They looked right into each other's eyes for a moment... She checked his ears, eyes, nose, and throat, listened to his lungs. She lingered one second too long examining his back.

She reached for the cabinet and took out several supplies. "Your head is still clouded?"

"No, I took the pill you gave me on the plane and then again on the way back" she was still working on his back and saw each other through the glass wall reflection. She frowned and sighed every time she spotted a new bruise or graze. "I honestly don't know where to start. Anything hurts more than the rest?" He brushed his ribs "Side of the chest. And my throat is still killing me."

"Well, you need to take antibiotics for another week. It's a common flu but we need to make sure it doesn't evolve into something else." Their eyes met again in the reflection but she looked down, clenching her teeth.

Her voice was cold and matter-of-factly. Her eyes however were telling a different story. She was taking off the ricochet carefully and cleaning up the wounds on his side. She seemed much too focused with the task at hand but he knew she was trying to hold her tongue.

"Something bothering you Doc?" She shook her head and patched the last of his near-misses in his shoulder rather forcefully. "Nothing Captain. We need x-rays. And then we need to remove them from the database" he turned to face her and talked slowly, in a conciliating tone.

"I don't mean that"

But she was still clenching her teeth "Well, if they stay in the system someone may find them and realize you have a respiratory infection. And then my ass will be on the line for not reporting it."

"Then why don't you?" He didn't mean his tone to sound accusing, but it did. "I've had enough problems in the last 3 days Rogers, I don't need one more."

"Right"

"Screw you Rogers, get the x-rays and bring them back. Here" she threw standard t-shirt and pants to his face and went back to her desk, leaving him on the stretcher side behind the three screens. He changed clothes carefully and walked slowly towards the door. He saw her pretending to be looking at her screen. He thought of reaching to her shoulder and apologize but decided to walk away instead.

Tony kept staring at Steve going away while zipping whiskey "They're so… _cute_ together. All that _tension_ building up. Let me tell you, when they finally hit it off, boy, we'll have to move to another building"

Bruce gave him a Hulk-worthy look "Stay away from it Tony" Stark sighed "How am I supposed to have fun around here then?"

Bruce moved something to the right screen "You can help me with this"

* * *

Once Bruce and Tony had left for the meeting, Hoban came into Penny's office. He locked the door behind him looking serious "Did you replace Romanoff's tests from before the op?"

She looked at him and nodded "Why?"

"Protocol" He took a deep breath. "I guess you'll want me to forget I've seen these results then" He handed over her new results: HGC was still high.

"I need to run an ultrasound, but she'll never agree. She probably needs surgery at this point"

"Or she's running a normal pregnancy"

"There's nothing normal about her line of work, I really don't think so Hobbie. Plus, she says she got her period this morning" Hoban took a deep breath and deleted the record.

"What do we do?" She looked at her friend "We can't force her to run tests"

"Then let's ground them all"

"The CDC cleared them on site; we have no grounds for that."

"Yeah, well, luckily for you, I'm running point on Extremis. I can ground them if I have a good excuse." They shared a smile. "It's time to go. You should go get the quarterback" she frowned "don't call him that" he snorted "okay, captain tightpants then" she sighed and started walking towards the x-ray area.

When she reached the room she saw how the technician was showing Steve something on her phone. By the looks of Steve when she walked in, Penny was pretty sure it was the video of their fight that had been circulating all over for the last day. Joy.

She cleared her throat "Luna, got the x-rays ready? We have a briefing in 10"

He started putting his t-shirt back on "We?" Penny gave Steve an annoyed stare. "Yes, Hoban and I are going as well"

She looked at the x-ray once the attendee handed it over. Steve had a small fracture on his rib but his lungs were clear. No infection, no signs of TB, nothing. She half smiled and put it away.

Steve saw her relief and hoped it wasn't just about her ass on the line, but about him. He wanted to clear the air between them a bit but didn't know where to start.

"Is everything okay Doc?"

"Yes Cap, I gotta bandage you and then you'll need to rest for a few days, but everything looks okay" she avoided eye contact and started walking away, after thanking Luna.

When they were half way through the deserted alley, he grabbed her by her arm and in a reflex she twisted his and pushed his face against the wall, pushing him with all her body weight. She seemed to entered agent-mode when sleep deprived. "Oh shit, sorry. Bran, kill the cams"

"Cameras everywhere right?"

"Yes, and the people behind them love spreading gossip"

"I've noticed. Penny, I-" he grabbed her by the arm and then tried to brush her face slowly but she moved away "Stop that. There are enough rumors running about you and me, I don't need one more. You've done enough"

"Penelope wait!" She turned around and was between angry and sad "I've slept 5 hours in a couch and I've been trying to figure out what the heck is wrong with you even though I have other priorities and you clearly don't deserve it"

His anger was starting to match hers "I've been trying to apologize since I got here, but *clearly* you just want to pick a fight with me. Fine, let's hear it"

"We have a meeting to get to, I've slept too little and I can't put up with one more joke from Stark today." Steve wasn't moving; he felt that if he didn't clear up the air right now, things wouldn't be as they used to be again.

"Hey, you're the one always calling Bruce and me your friends and you just avoided telling us this HUGE thing about you, I just… I snapped. I was very unthoughtful of me"

"Oh, sure, okay, no problem. I just, you know, it only took me like 5 years to put my life back together and get a job where people _wouldn't _look at me with pity or contempt. But hey, I can always count on my friend Steve to blurt out about the most painful time of my life and get rrrrright back there"

"You're exaggerating"

"Sure, I'm exaggerating. We're late for the meeting Rogers" He started walking slowly trying to figure out what to say next. They were both upset and tired and all the stress from work wasn't helping their… friendship?

"You know everything there is to know about me. I found out more about you reading your medical record than in the last year Nella" The nickname made her stood on dry.

"That's not true. Wait. Why are you calling me that? How, ho-?"

He stopped and checked around, no one was around or looking at them. "Brandon, make sure the cameras are off" He repressed the delight that caused him seeing her blush when he looking intently at her. She was still frowning but the anger seemed to be gone from her eyes, she was faking it right now. "All cameras are playing old tapes Sir"

"I like your henchman, he's very polite" Steve kept getting closer to her and she suddenly realized she was against the wall, with Rogers way too close for her to still be mad at him. "What do you want Steve?"

"Just shut up for two seconds okay?" he was a bit flushed too. She instinctively checked his neck and forehead "You have a fever again, c'mon" but he didn't let her move. He placed his hands on the wall, one on each side of her.

"I was angry. Very angry. For the last year I became friends with Bruce, which is something I would've never seen coming. And with you. I mean, you calm me down, you don't see me as the freak I am. You just get_ me_. And now I get why. You lost something too and you know there's no way back." She realized how sad he was, how much he longed for his old life "It was a huge shock Penny. Reading what happened to you made me realize a lot of things about you but at the same time, you didn't tell me, you didn't trust me. And I trust you with my life, everyday. And that got me so-"

"-mad. I get it. I just… it's painful to talk about it. I lost _everything_ and I just don't want to remember all that pain. You know, some days I even forget it happened and then I see Clint or Natasha and…" her eyes were filled with tears but she took a deep breath and tried to calm down. He talked,

"-reality hits and things are so-" he took a deep breath, looking intently at her lips now, his tone lower "messed up and nothing is what it used to be" she was afraid of looking up to his eyes. She was afraid of seeing him lost in thought, remembering Peggy Carter. She was terrified of admitting to herself that Bruce was right.

"Well, everything happens for a reason I guess. If you hadn't frozen up you'd made it to your date with your lady officer"

"Yes, I'd be an old guy now. But I wouldn't have met you. "she looked up to his eyes slightly confused "I mean, all of you. I don't know." _So close._

"You should call her Steve, you're dying to" now he was frowning. "No, that's not what I'm tryi-"

"She's still alive and I'm pretty sure she recognized your outfit, so, call her, see what happened, fill in the blanks. And then go on with your new life, you're still young."

"So are you."

"Yeah well, I feel 100 years old sometimes"

"Well, technically, I am 100 years old" she chuckled and he found himself brushing her cheek with his thumb. She seemed to have forgotten she was mad at him.

"I guess we've had our first fight" his fever was definitely running high because he couldn't help being drawn closer and closer to her lips.

She had to stop him, she couldn't do this. Not now "Well, real friends fight all the time" she smiled but her eyes were saddened. Her words and expression confused him, but he didn't have time to clear things.

Fury's voice on his ear piece startled him "Captain Rogers, we're waiting for you in the Conference room. Bring Dr. Morse if you find her please."

She looked away and cleared her throat "He'll ping me in a second. You go first; I need to pick things from my desk." She was quickly walking away when she remembered something. "Oh wait."

She moved up her sleeve and grabbed Steve's arm. She placed her black bracelet with round metal studs over his arm and pressed one of them. He felt a little pinch.

"You should feel better in no time" and started walking away. "Wait, what-?"

"You guys are not the only ones with toys you know" she walked into her office and he took the elevator.

The fever was subduing but his longing for her was only starting.


	18. Chapter 18: Anomalies

**Hi! Made a few tweaks here and there.  
****Thanks for staying around :)**  


**Disclaimer: I dont own Avengers or Spidey.**

* * *

**Chapter 18: Anomalies**

It had been an odd week. Well, an odd month… No, make it an odd year.

He had gone from being a doctor in the run through poor countries to having a glassed office in the middle of Manhattan. A room with a view.

Too bad it felt more like a cage than anything else.

Yes, he had made new friends; yes, he had managed to control _the other guy_ to some extent; yes, he was part of the Avengers. But he was still trapped. He had become a precious commodity in a paperwork war between the Army and SHIELD.

If only he could get rid of the other guy, he could get back to be just Dr. Banner… No, it was too late for that. He'd be trialed for everything the other guy did. Or he'd just continue to be another pawn for SHIELD.

A familiar knock on their shared glassed wall brought a half smile to his face followed by low sharp breaths, trying to calm himself down. How did she do it?

"I'm okay Penny, don't worry" she came into his office and checked his eyes: half of his pupils were green. He knew he was getting worse. Soon, he wouldn't be able to control it and all hell would break loose. He only hoped to be in an open field, far from people that could get hurt.

"I could help you know, if you'd let me into your secret formula thingy"

"That goes both ways Dr. Morse" his pupils were back to normal. "You've helped more than enough. You've stabilized the formula, you convinced your boyfriend to help with the rays… now it's my turn"

"_Convince_ is a bit of a stretch. It was the only way to keep him from slaughtering Dr. Hoban"

"Stark had it coming Bruce, he's a big boy, he should know better than to try Extremis on himself"

"He did give a compelling speech about his reasons for it, but well, he's Tony, does it really surprise you?"

She gestured a no, but her mind seemed to be drifting away "Shouldn't you be getting ready for that big surgery of yours?" She looked puzzled,

"We have offices next to each other, and Hoban is not really the quiet type"

"But it's need to know basis! Fury's gonna kill me if he finds out you know"

"Well, I just know you two have a surgery scheduled, nothing else, so, no harm done there Penny" he smiled in a comforting way.

"It's not for another two hours. I'm just tired and a bit anxious, and then I have the night shift, _yet again_. I could work on your formula, c'mon."

Bruce kept on working on his screen ignoring her attempts of getting his attention,

"I guess it sucks being on Fury's doghouse"

"It could've been worse, trust me. He probably didn't like the whole "I told you Romanoff should stay grounded" speech in the middle of the meeting last week" Bruce chuckled remembering Fury's face.

"It was funny seeing him so mad, I didn't think he had facial expressions until that moment" Penny giggled and nodded. Bruce continued,

"Though my favorite part was when Tony googled "Clintasha" in the middle of Fury's rant and started playing the video in the screens behind him." Penny laughed wholeheartedly "Best. Debriefing. _Ever._ Wanna hear the funny part? I literally told Clint that very morning "Don't get caught on camera making out with Romanoff" and what does he do? He kisses her in the middle of the op to *quote* calm his partner down *unquote*. That was so careless of him, you'd think he'd know better by now. He's been doing this for ages."

Bruce sighed "It happens I guess, sometimes you can't help being reckless." She looked through the window and sighed, trying to grasp an idea. Then she looked at her friend "The thing is, it makes no sense. I know what it's like, the rush, the adrenaline, but when you're out there you had thought three different alternatives to every move you make, you don't just drop your act to calm Romanoff the frak down. There are _so_ many things wrong with this picture"

"Maybe they're just in love doc" Steve walked into the office looking healthy and standing tall again. Bruce picked a difference in their general awkwardness and started looking away from his screen for the first time in the morning,

"No question about that, but when you're in an Op you need to leave your feelings aside. Feelings gets people _killed _Rogers. Or in their case, burnt for good"

"So you think they were wrong?"

"Don't you? You got hurt pretty bad, Mark had his spine compromised and until Sunday we didn't know if he was gonna make it, all because she panicked and he rushed to calm her down, leaving you both with no cover!"

"We had Stark covering us. All I'm saying is that emotions are what make us human Penn, you should know that. Haven't you ever been reckless when someone you cared for was down?" She started stuttering and looked at her phone when it rang.

She looked at it, and her expression seemed both confused and cocky when she saw who the caller was. She picked up and gestured them to go on with the talk later. "Hello stranger, didn't think you'd call at this point" She started walking to her office passing right next to Steve. "Well, I um, I have a surgery in like an hour and a half, shouldn't you be at- okay, okay, meet you at the park in 20?"

She hung up and rushed to get her purse and went to the back of her office and grabbed some medical supplies. Then she turned around and saw both of them staring at her "You didn't just see that. I'm going..._ out_, I'm meeting-"

Steve cut her mid sentence. "Let me guess: a friend" Penny's expression went from playful to plain annoyed again.

"Yes. Need something from the street?"

"We're covered, thanks"

"Okay, bye then" she rushed out and Bruce crossed his arms over his chest "Okay, what's going on?" Steve pretended not to understand what he meant. Since he wasn't getting any response, Bruce took off his glasses slowly and came closer to him. "Will I have to get it off of you the hard way?"

Steve cleared his throat. "Nothing's going on, we're just friends. She has plenty of those." Bruce clenched his teeth and Steve sighed.

"Nothing's happening Bruce. Trust me, you'd be the first to know." Bruce put his glasses back on,

"Right." He turned his head and started working on his touch screen.

* * *

"You know, this'd be much easier if you'd just come work with us. We'd be at my office, I could disinfect this and sew you properly, not looking over my shoulder-" They were sitting next to a big tree that was concealing most of Peter's arm and how Penny was stitching him.

"I heal easy, chill out"

"You do, but you're not indestructible, you can get hurt, you can get shot, you could die Peter"

"You're starting to sound like Aunt May" she _was_ sounding like Aunt May. She had called Penny a day after Peter told her about the job and scholarship offer. Penny wasn't sure if he knew. "Um, about your Aunt…"

"You've met, I know, she told me she called you. She liked you." Penny half smiled.

"I liked her cookies" he grabbed his backpack and took out a Ziploc bag.

"Here, knock yourself out" she sighed while stitching the last part of the deep graze on his arm. "At least let me get you a better suit Peter, please"

"What's wrong with my suit?!"

"What's- what's, okay, I can cut it with a nail clipper, that's what's wrong!" He looked at her and the tiny little stitches she was doing. "I gotta say, you're very good at that." She smiled.

"I'm very good at several things actually" He cleared his throat "You should've called me when you got this, not 2 hours after Parker" he looked mortified,

"It was messy, you weren't home, I didn't-"

"How- how do you know that?"

"I guess you don't always do a perimeter check when you get home" she laughed at his comment. "You need to stop watching spy shows." She put a gauze over the stitches and taped it. "How will I learn if I don't watch shows?!"

He zipped his hoodie up and smiled thanking her. They got up "Okay, what if I start training you, off hours."

"Really? You? But-"

"Don't let the surgeon outfit fool you kid, I was a very good operative for like, a decade"

"Is this a way to lure me into SHIELD with your coolness?"

"No, It's a way to make sure you get a better chance at a fight, not just counting on the web slingers. And to get your aunt a bit less mortified about your late outings" He sighed,

"Why should I trust you? I mean-"

"I just left my job before a very important surgery to patch you up. Sure, I could just be playing you. But I'm not Peter. I know, you have no way too know. I just want you to make an informed decision" He nodded and kept walking slowly by her, "Besides, I know you'll come around when the time's right. I'm that good" he snorted at her cocky act.

"So, what does your girlfriend think?"

"She wanted me to join the Marines, crazy huh? Her dad was a policeman, you know? Of course you know. But she doesn't like SHIELD and she definitely doesn't like you. She found all these awful things online about the agency, and I guess she doesn't want them to turn me into something I'm not."

"I wouldn't want that either"

"I know" He smiled at her and kept on walking. They were one block away from the SHIELD building when she stopped their pace "Pete, before I go..."

"Yes?"

"I don't know how you got your… _gift_ but I'm pretty sure it wasn't in your pre-teen years, was it? You would've come up in the radar sooner"

"Not exactly, no. It was different, I-" She cleared her throat and spoke looking straight into his eyes,

"No it wasn't. You started feeling different around 12, whenever your hormones started kicking in. One day you had a nightmare and found yourself stuck to the wall. Understood?"

He frowned, "Why?"

"Because Gwen is right. Awful things happen every day and there are far worse people out there. If you were _born_ mutant, you can't be tested upon and replicated, are we clear?" He nodded taking a deep breath.

She brushed his arm and gave him some painkillers. "One every 8 hours if you're in too much pain. Wash that carefully and get to school! Oh, and no fooling around tonight, doctor's orders"

"But it's Thursday, all the bad guys come out in Thursdays!"

"Leave something for NYPD, Parker"

He placed his skateboard on the floor and waved at her "I'll see what I can do"

She turned around and crossed down the streets towards the SHIELD building. She saw Steve coming out, laughing with Natasha holding him by his arm. She clenched her teeth when the red hair said hello to her.

"Romanoff, Rogers" she lingered one second too long looking straight at Steve's eyes and then walked away.

Natasha concealed a half smile while getting into a SHIELD car.


	19. Chapter 19: Surgery

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers, Spiderman or _The scientist_ from Coldplay.**

**Thanks for the kind reviews we've been getting on this story!**

* * *

**Chapter 19: Surgery**

"Dr. Morse?" Hoban's tone in the OR made her snap out of it. "Container", the attendant brought a small box of adamantium, wired inside.

The small rounded stone was glowing, lighting the entire room, directly from the Phil Coulson's open chest. Penny took a deep breath and started clipping the pericardium tissue that had grown around the stone. Once it was released from it, the stone's light went dimmer. She dropped it in the box, the attendant closed it and took it outside, where Fury was watching the procedure and waiting.

Hoban continued monitoring the formula intake and how Phil's system reacted to it. Even though he nearly flatlined when the stone was removed, a combination of atropine, Steve's blood transfusion and Penny's skills brought him back to normal. They went on with the rest of the surgery as if it were a normal Pericardiectomy, removing the fibrous covering of the heart and then re-covered it. She took all the time they were able to spare to see how his lungs and arteries were reacting. Everything seemed to be healing inside out, maintaining a constant flow.

After 8 hours, she turned the surgery to Hoban so he'd wire back together Phil's breastbone and close him up. Penny decided to slow down the formula intake to avoid post-op complications. Hoban agreed and she went outside to talk to Fury, who hadn't left the spot during the entire procedure.

"Did it work?"

"Too soon to tell, Hobs will wrap it up and then we'll move him to post-op."

"Both of you get some rest. I'll need to see you tomorrow at 1000 hours for debriefing."

"On what Sir?" He looked at her and then walked away. She stayed on Fury's spot, unable to walk away. This didn't feel right, this just didn't feel right.

* * *

Hoban and Penny were going up the elevator. He was starting to get worried about her. He recognized all the signs: the slow shaking, the dark shadows under her eyes, the lack of response because she was lost in thought. He couldn't let her fall in that dark place again, not because it was his primary duty as her ghost handler, but because he feared she couldn't take one more heartbreak.

He came closer to her brushing her arm slowly, "You've done everything you remotely could to save him Birdie. It's up to him now. You need to let it go." She sighed slowly trying to calm herself down but she was way pass that. She broke in tears and he held her close to him, "It's okay, it's okay" he kept her close brushing her back when the elevator's doors opened and Steve and Natasha were giggling carrying several parcels. She took a step back from Hoban and cleared her throat, leaving her arms crossed over her chest and her hand half concealing her face.

"Are you... _okay_ Dr. Morse?" Penny cleared her throat and looked at Natasha. Whatever she was playing, Penny wasn't interested. "I'm okay."

Steve pushed the 3rd and talked, "Surgery didn't go well?" Penny clenched her teeth and made a mental note to rant both to Hoban and Bruce so they'd keep their mouth shut. "It went okay. Long week, that's all." She sighed and looked at Natasha.

"How are you feeling Romanoff?" they looked at each other "Just peachy, doctor." Steve and Hoban shared concerned glances at the female's exchange. They couldn't reach the 3rd floor soon enough... Natasha and Steve came out of the elevator whereas the doctors went to their own floor.

Penny went to her office and Hoban hovered around her "I'll be fine Hob, I got the night shift, you go spend time on the 8th, really" He brushed her arm "I can stay you know" she half smiled sadly to her friend "I know, but it's okay, I'd like to be alone for a little while"

"Let's compromise: I'll get you some food, okay?" She waved the bag of homemade cookies to him making a statement of _I don't need food _and headed to the back of her office where the sofa was, reaching for something concealed behind it.

"Wow, I hadn't seen that guitar case in ages". A smile flickered across her lips while she started walking towards the terrace carrying the battered guitar case. "Get a coat Birdie" she nodded, "Thanks for everything Hob" He half smiled and took the elevator.

* * *

It was a cold night, but the sky was clear and she just needed to feel the fresh air. She was playing slowly, tuning the guitar she hadn't played in ages. She was lost in thought chewing one of aunt May's cookies and staring at the pictures inside the guitar case.

She didn't realize she had started singing to herself,

_Tell me your secrets and ask me your questions  
Oh, let's go back to the start  
Running in circles, coming up tails  
Heads on a science apart_

There she was, being held closely by Clint with Phil hovering next to her with a half smile. It was Vegas, back when she had just become Mrs. Barton,

_Nobody said it was easy  
It's such a shame for us to part  
Nobody said it was easy  
No one ever said it would be this hard  
Oh, take me back to the start_

Phil's half smile looking at the camera was staring at her, and she couldn't help feeling she missed something, that she didn't do everything she could, that she took one minute too long to bring him back that awful day,

_I was just guessing at numbers and figures  
Pulling the puzzles apart  
Questions of science, science and progress  
Do not speak as loud as my heart_

And now she'd have to tell Tricia that his chances of coming back were slim, slim to none. She'd have to see Zoe grow up without his dad, just like she did. She'd had to accept that she couldn't bring him back, that she really couldn't save him,

_But tell me you love me, come back and haunt me  
Oh and I rush to the start  
Running in circles, chasing our tails  
Coming back as we are_

But he could make it... People survived pericardiectomies every day. But no, it wasn't just that, there was also the growing Tesseract on his chest for over a year now…

_Nobody said it was easy  
Oh, it's such a shame for us to part  
Nobody said it was easy  
No one ever said it would be so hard  
I'm going back to the start_

She was startled by someone talking by the door "I didn't know you could sing doc"

"There're a lot of things you don't know about me Rogers" He came closer to her carrying a bag with something that smelled like Chinese food.

"Dr. Hoban sent me with food. And I'm supposed to force it through your throat if you don't eat it"

"_He_ said that?"

"Your _friend_ Mark Reagan said that" She left the guitar over her legs, decided to ignore his tone and reached for one of the little boxes and chopsticks. He squatted next to her "You know, I think I could adjust to pretty much everything that this time has to offer, _except_ eating with those things" She half smiled and patted the spot next to her. While he was sitting and grabbing the other pair of chopsticks, she started showing him how to use them,

"You need to grab them like this-"

"Like this?"

"Yeah, and then you just move'em together and grab food and, yum!" She started chewing comically.

"You're funny"

"I have my moments. Now you try" He tried following her lead but failed miserably, dropping most of it back in the package, causing a shared giggle,

"It's not so hard, here" She had grabbed a little piece of chicken from his box with her own chopsticks and was offering it to him. They looked deeply at each other's eyes when he ate it. "It's good, but I guess I'll settle for a fork next time"

"Fair enough" She kept on eating and laughing at him while he tried mastering the art of eating with chopsticks. It was getting colder and she unconsciously got closer to him.

Steve wasn't precisely _good_ at small talk with women, but he felt relaxed around her, "So"

"So?"

"How are you feeling? That song wasn't very… upbeat"

"I'm not feeling very upbeat lately"

"Anything I can do?" She smiled sadly and kissed him in his cheek,

"You already are"

When they were done with the food, neither of them felt like moving. Yes, it was colder than before, and it was late and she wasn't on her post… But if someone unlikely showed up, the AIs would let her know. She was partially leaning on his shoulder and had started plucking the guitar when Steve finally asked about the pictures in the case.

"Is that really you?" she moved forward and grabbed the picture and gave it to him, then she resumed playing leaning on his side. His arm was around her shoulders now and her head was lying close to the curve of his neck,

"That was newlywed me yes. Shocking to see me so young huh?"

"Shocking to see you so brunette"

"It was a phase; I had to prove I was an adult when I turned 16 so, naturally cut my hair and dyed it black"

"You married Barton at 16?!" she chuckled,

"Lords no, we married when I was 20ish. Phil was furious but he came anyway. Do you remember Phil Coulson?"

Steve saw him half smiling in the picture hovering around a young Penny. _Protecting her; clenching his teeth; unhappy with that decision; but half smiling as to not to hurt her feelings. _

"I remember Coulson, he seemed like a good man"

"He was" He gave her back the picture and she put it back in the case. Then she got back to the curve of his neck and started humming a tune while playing slowly.

There was another picture in the case: a dark looking guy with a t-shirt he'd seen on the geeks from the 9th floor, something about an _arcade game_, whatever that meant. He had dark hair and was playing the guitar and smiling to her in the picture. She was sitting next to him with a mic.

He thought of asking who that was since he seemed to be exactly what Steve had heard her describe to Clint not that long ago. But he was enjoying this so much; he didn't want to think about her being with someone else. He didn't want to know who she was aching about, not right now anyway.

He was happy holding her and making her smile. He was glad to have her near his chest, leaning on him, being so close and opened to share things with him… He started stroking her arm slowly and he felt her head moving closer to the curve of his neck. And then, "I just remembered something."

"Hmm?" She sounded sleepy and the guitar was slightly slipping, so he grabbed it and placed it beside him, trying not to move much,

"Aren't there cameras out here?"

"Two, but we're in a blind spot. I'm so tired" she said that last line almost whispering on his neck. He could feel her lips near his collarbone. It was driving him mad.

"Don't you want to go inside? It'll be freezing here soon"

"But you're here" She sounded more sleepy than before and she was moving closer to him, in the middle of her sleepiness. He stayed there brushing her face and arm slowly when he noticed that a vintage trading card was popping out behind one of the photos.

* * *

Penny woke up startled by Elinor's voice through the Bluetooth. "Dr. Morse, there's a patient in the area". It took her a moment to realize she was still outside sleeping on the curve of Steve's neck, with Steve's arm around her waist and her own over his chest. He was barely awake too, he looked so… charming all sleepy.

Charming and embarrassed about his hand on the curve of her waist… She got up quickly,

"Got a patient. Could you get t-"

"Sure, you go ahead" She smiled at him and started walking to the office. What would she do now? Hoban had clearly sent Steve for a reason. And it had worked. She was getting too close to Rogers , everyone was noticing it and soon enough she would have to face it. Or end it.

But there was nothing to end… Nothing was really happening. Nothing _actionable_ anyway. They just hanged out a lot, and laughed, and talked, and fought, and trained… Oh Lords. "Bran, could you change the feeds so that it shows the cap leaving short after he brought the food?"

"Surely Dr. P"

"You're the best Bran, thanks" she walked into the offices lounge and saw a petite red haired looking pale and cuddling in the sofa waiting for a doctor.

_Uh oh._


	20. Chapter 20: Broken

**Hi! Corrected a few things and polished some others a bit :)  
**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers or Spidey.**

* * *

**Chapter 20: Broken**

_Where the hell is Hoban?_ She thought, and then she saw a sleepy Penelope Morse coming from the terrace._ Uh oh. _

"I'll- I'll come back later" Natasha tried to get up and move away from the arm chair she was sitting in, but the pain all over her was too much. She couldn't walk without feeling her insides burning.

"Hoban's shift won't start for another two hours. Are you in pain?"

"I'll come later, don't worry" Penny rushed to her and seized her by the arm, making Natasha wince at the pain "So now your arm hurts too. How long?"

Natasha sighed, she knew what it meant, she didn't need to be a fancy _Magna Cum Laude _like the blond in front of her. Shit, she was sure Hoban was on duty today. _Shit shit shit. _Still, she needed a doctor, and she couldn't really go to any clinic anywhere in this godforsaken city, not after that meltdown kiss in the middle of the op last week. She'd be all over the web again; she could even see the headlines in her head…

"Couple of hours, the arm just started."

"Come on in, let me help" the blond offered her back and place Natasha's arm around her neck, helping her walk to the stretcher in the office. _If Morse would just drop the nice act this would be so much fucking easier._

"Don't be nice, just do your job"

"Fair enough. Are you still spotting?"

"Started earlier last night, I was going to see Hoban later or something, I just"

"Yeah, well, if you would've listened to me a week ago we _may_ have been able to fix this with no surgery, but now, you're screwed"

"Surgery-what?"

"You know what arm pain means. Reflex pain for internal bleeding. That's why you're here, you hate doctors, but you'd hate to die even more"

"I don't hate _all _doctors"

"Touché. Well, you should've listened to either one of us"

"Could we avoid the _I told you so_ speech?"

"You told me to stop being nice, now deal with it" Morse had started moving the transducer around Natasha's lower abdomen, and then her face changed. Whatever she was seeing in the ultrasound was not good. Morse swallowed slowly and spoke,

"I hate being right sometimes. Elinor, get me Dr. Hoban ASAP, I need him in the OR"

There was a low knock on the glass door and a sleepy Rogers was standing there, guitar case in his hand, same clothes as the night before, messy hair. Very unlike himself. _What the f-oh… Just look at that!_

"Cap, what are you doing here?" Natasha forgot for a second her womb was stabbing her from the inside out. Before he could answer the med AI spoke, "Dr. Morse, I can't reach him. His phone is disconnected and there's no answer in his extension" Natasha saw Penny grit her teeth and for a second she felt scared.

"Frak, okay, page Dr. Stephens"

"She's not on call Dr. Morse"

"I don't care, page her ass and get her here. Rogers, I'm with a patient. What do you need?"

"I came to drop your guitar, but then I heard Natasha's voice. How are you feeling? Want me to call Cl- someone?"

"No need, Barton's busy in the Hellicarrier. Plus, the doctor here will fix me up in no time, right doctor?" Penny took a deep breath and kept moving the transducer ignoring Natasha's comment, which made her feel even worse. She decided to focus elsewhere… "Nice shirt Cap, brings out your eyes. Wait, weren't you using it yesterday? You never use the same shirt two days on a row" And now he was blushing. Natasha had to repress a smirk.

"Dr. Morse, Dr. Stephens is on her Hamptons' home, and there's a storm, she can't make it for at least 3 hours"

"Frak it. Okay, okay, uhm" she saw Steve standing there and seemed to have an idea. _Finally, I'm in pain here!_

"Elinor, did Hoban left the premises?"

Natasha answered before the AI "He was having dinner with Mark last night, he's probably there still." Penny nodded to her and took off her Bluetooth pitching it over to Steve.

"Please go to the 3rd and find Hoban. If he's not at his room he's probably still with Mark. Break the door down if you have to, but get him here. He'll have to run point the surgery. Here, this'll help you find the right room" He grabbed her Bluetooth lingering there for a second looking at the doctor and the patient and then took off.

"What you mean Hoban?"

"Natasha, I'm a cardiothoracic surgeon, I hadn't done this kind of procedure since my residence. I'm not taking any chances here"

"Weren't you top of your class? Don't you patch up everyone here? Didn't you do an appendectomy on that 8th floor geek not a week ago? Why can't you do this?!"

"I'll be attending Hoban, I hadn't slept much last night. Now, Hoban _hopefully_ did and he _is_ an ER surgeon. Let's get you ready for surgery, c'mon"

"You owe me this. You're the best according to everyone, so you do it"

"What I _owe_ you is for you to get the best chance you can to make it out of the OR alive. He's the best choice Romanoff" She helped Natasha up and led her to a wheelchair. _No way._

"I'm not sitting there"

"You're gonna sit there and I'm gonna take you to the showers, where we'll get you prepped up for surgery."

"I can walk"

"You know you can't. Now sit or I'll make you"

"I'd like to see you try"

"Could you just sit on the goddamn chair? There's no one else here. No one is going to question you being the toughest woman in the building cos you won't walk to your own surgery, c'mon Natasha" She reluctantly sat gritting her teeth at the first name basis while Morse slowly drove her to the other side of the building.

"Don't worry Romanoff, you're not going to die on that table. I couldn't stand Barton weeping all over this place"

"Die? Isn't that a bit of an extreme alternative? What's the prognosis anyway Doctor? You hadn't told me yet"

"Ectopic pregnancy, I warned you about this a week ago. It probably ruptured your tube by now but the ultrasound is inconclusive. We won't know until-"

"Until you open me up. Funny how life works. Hope you remember I spared your life once Doctor"

"I do, though I think your words at the time were more in the lines of _"You won't last a week after everything he's done to you." _I may be mistaken though, I was under _serious _dosages of mind controlling drugs" Natasha cleared her throat.

"Well, they weren't nice to me either if it's any consolation"

"I bet. There has to be a reason why you turned and became SHIELD's finest female agent. I don't think Clint's charm was remotely enough to make you turn against Lakin" Natasha turned in the chair and looked at Morse straight in the eyes. Could it be possible she remembered? She wasn't supposed to. She said she hadn't.

"Lakin?" Penny smiled at Natasha's blink of fear.

"I read it in one of your early debriefings. Don't worry, I still don't remember much of my _downtime_" and there it was, Morse's tail. She remembered. _Morse remembered._

* * *

Clint was pacing quickly in front of the room where Natasha was resting in bed and talking to Penny. They looked serious and Natasha seemed clearly sad. He wanted to be there holding her close to him and telling her that everything would be okay, whatever the hell it was.

He couldn't believe it had been 2 hours already and he still didn't know what the hell was wrong with her. He had _borrowed_ a Quinjet after Rogers paged him and got here as quickly as possible but was still unable to talk to her. He hated being outside a room when someone he cared for was down. He felt powerless. He didn't like feeling powerless.

When he was about to burst in, Rogers stopped him, using his usual _I outrank you _tone.

"Calm down Barton"

"I need to get in there. She's, she's-"

"She's going to be okay Barton. Now get a grip, she needs you to be the strong one."

"How- what happened to her? She was fine when I left"

"She was bleeding internally and they had to run her to the OR, but Hoban and Penny fixed her up. She'll be okay Barton"

Barton's eyes were lost inside the room, thinking of the last time he was out looking in. Only, that time the one in the bed was Penny, back when she was his Nella.

Only now she was the doctor and his other love was in bed. Funny how life turns out. Suddenly he frowned confused staring at his girls. Soon, Rogers had an equally surprised reaction. Natasha had grabbed Penny by the hand and seemed to be saying something like Thank you. _Romanoff was thanking Morse._

"Do you think they made up?"

"I wouldn't like to be in your shoes if they did Barton"

"Sure you would" Clint's tone didn't have his usual playfulness. Steve guessed he was bound to have _the talk_ with him once this settled down.

Then they saw Natasha nodding and Penny injecting something on her IV. She walked out of the room after grabbing Natasha's chart and stood between Clint and the door.

"She needs to get some rest Barton, she's sedated now"

Clint asked the obvious question. Penny took a deep breath and cleared her throat.

"Wyatt changed her pills and that caused her to get cysts. _That_ caused a rupture in her left tube and we had to remove it. But she'll be fine. She needs time to heal and she'll still be able to have kids in time. Now, I'm late for a meeting with Fury." Penny was clearly uncomfortable and so was Clint, they've had moments of weirdness in the past year, but they were never awkward around each other... not until this moment.

"Can I stay with her?" Penny's eyes flickered for a second and then she agreed letting him through.

Steve needed to clear something up, "Doc, can I have a word?"

"I'm late for a meeting but we can ride the elevator together cap"

Once they reached the elevator and it started moving up, Steve jammed it. They were suddenly stuck between floors.

"Brandon, garble the feeds"

"Sure Sir" Penny looked annoyed and extended her hand,

"Can I have my sidekick back please?"

"In a while. Why did you lie to him?"

"What do you mean?"

"She didn't have whatever you said. She was pregnant. I heard you during the surgery" Penny sighed heavily and leaned on the elevator wall. "She asked me to keep quiet, and I agreed. Barton's had enough and he has a distinct ability of chickening out when someone needs him. The less he knows the better"

"But it was his ba-"

"_Shut up_ Steve." Yes, this was definitely a sensitive subject. "You're not supposed to know this and there's doctor-patient confidentiality. Please respect that. When she feels strong enough, she'll tell him, I'm sure of that. It's her decision and we must respect it."

"And how are you with all of this?" Penny tried to look confused,

"I'm a bit tired. I'd like to get a bath and sleep in my own bed for a change. Not that your chest isn't comfy or anything." She blushed realizing she had just said that out loud. She cleared her throat looking away "How are you?"

"What you mean?"

"Well, you had quite a scare when you found Hoban with Mark by the looks of you" She couldn't help giggle a bit, while taking her hand to her head, back to where her latest scar was. Deviation technique pays off again.

"It was… um… _uncomfortable_. I guess I'm old fashioned" Uncomfortable didn't even cut it. Try embarrassed to the core.

"They do make a cute couple" Penny tried to avoid the giggles and think that Rogers had been frozen in 1945, before the Civil Rights movement, the 60s, the Beatles, the Stones, Woodstock, same-sex marriage being legal... before the Cold War. He probably didn't even know what the Berlin Wall was.

"I guess, I just saw… too much of it" She kept smiling at him while leaning passed him to turn the elevator on again. He cleared his throat and took a step back from her when they started moving up again.

They were looking at each other from either side of the elevator, silence ruling the way up, though they were so many things they both needed to say. Finally Steve spoke when she was about to take off to Fury's office.

"Want to have dinner later? Or tomorrow?" She half smiled and was about to say yes, when she remembered she was on the 20th floor. She looked at Fury's office, and when she looked back at him, he had his answer.

He took off the Bluetooth and handed it over to her, extending his hand. She hesitated, sighed and then held his hand with her own, not realizing she was brushing his skin slowly.

"You keep it, I'll get another one. He's _your _sidekick too now. Don't tell anyone though." He sighed. He realized this was as much they could ever be, as much as they could share, as long as they'd be on SHIELD's watch. And he feared that it would never stop.

He saw her walk away and heard Brandon's voice coming out of the Bluetooth. He put it on,

"Sir?"

"Yes Brandon?"

"Director Fury wants to see you in 15 minutes"

And it dawned to him: she'd given him Brandon, the one thing SHIELD had no idea about. The one thing that seemed to overrule every other protocol in the building.


	21. Chapter 21: Keys to the Kingdom

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers or Spidey.**

* * *

**Chapter 21: Keys to the Kingdom**

_One more try. This has to work. It has to work. _

_It has the plant, it has the transcription factor calculated. I reverted the growth. It's stable now. It has to work._

_It has to work. This has to end. It has to work. _

He grabbed the little tube from the sample reader, pocketed before anyone could see him and started looking for needles in Penny's office. The drug cabinet where she kept everything was closed. _Fuck, fuck, fuck. _And then he remembered she had been working with samples of her formula in the back of the office. He found a syringe there and a flask of it. He sighed relieved grabbing both things just in case. _Too much people are here now, I'll gotta do it later. Later. Outside. Gotta go outside. Leave people out of harms' way. _Betty...If only he could talk to Betty.

_But then the __**anger **__spoke to him. _

**_"Betty knows we love her. And she's not scared of us." _**Bruce tried to quiet the anger down, but it wouldn't be ignored anymore. **"**_**You can't hide from us. I remember everything you don't want to."**_

Flashes of his childhood started filling his head with pain and anger. The clenched jaw... the closed fists... the broken arm... the blood on the wall… the cops… the mourning clothes… _Stop. Stop now. _

**_"Now you remember too. Remember father beating up mother. Remember mother bleeding. Remember how we couldn't fight. But now we can"_**

_Stop. NOW._

An alarm started bleeping on Penny's iPad. He clicked it and saw a little window with his stats. He figured it all came from their inserted chip, that thing must have sensors too. But she's not here. _Good, she won't get scared._

**_"Penny is our friend. She's not scared of us. We won't hurt her."_**

_You'll lose control. I can't be sure._

**_"We don't hurt friends. We need to hurt bad people. Bad people gets hurt."_**

Bruce didn't realize he was closing his fists too tight on the flask, and didn't realize until he felt the cut. "SHIT!"

Hoban rushed to Penny's office and saw Bruce bleeding and clearly distressed. The brown in his eyes was little to none and Hoban feared for everyone's safety. Bruce started taking low sharp breaths and soon he was more calmed.

While stitching up his wound Hoban asked him what happened. "I just remembered something I hadn't thought of in a long time. I'm sorry if I scared you"

"Takes a lot more than that to scare me Dr. Banner" _Liar, you're terrified of me even looking at you._

"That flask that broke… Was it something you were working on?" _Go tell your boss, I dare you. I dare you._

"No, it was Penny's formula. I was working with some variables and wanted to see how it worked on a sample" _Smile, smile and make him go away. Go away. Just go away Hoban. _

**_"He'll tell Fury. He don't trust us."_**

"Good then, we won't have to give you any meds to counter-effect anything. That's good. I do need to give you this, just for the cut." Bruce nodded and felt a pinch.

Hoban smiled while placing a big band aid over the stitches and told him he was all set. Bruce thanked him and rushed out to the cafeteria, to get a soothing tea. When he was out of eye reach, Hoban grabbed a different needle and gathered what was left of the flask on the floor, along with the gauze he had used on Bruce.

_Let's see if you're telling the truth or not Dr. Hulk. _

* * *

"How is the recruitment going Doctor Morse?"

"Good morning to you too Sir" Fury sat down and gestured her to do the same. He seemed concerned, looking at her intently.

"No coffee this time? Okay, well, recruitment's going well Sir. He'll come around when we need him."

"Will he now?"

Penny cleared her throat, "Yes"

"Does that mean he agreed to the terms?"

"Not yet" Fury started leaning on his desk and clenching his teeth.

"Estimated date?"

"Soon"

"Soon is not enough. Times are changing fast; reality is not what it was a year ago. We need to _move forward_." Fury got up and came closer to her, with his hands in his pockets. _Please not the bracelet, not the bracelet, not the bracelet. _

"So things changed and now you want him in the Avengers?" He sat next to her and started playing with something in his hand. An old bracelet with charms. _Frak_.

"Now we need him. Half of the team is unstable" She nodded. _Not even this office is secure now, fraking great. This day keeps getting better and better._

Fury sighed and leaned back on the chair next to her when he saw her picking on the bracelet. "How is Cheese Doctor?"

"He's stable but irresponsive. I wanted to request permission to get a safe identity and transfer him to a regular hospital."

Fury's countenance changed for a second, "I can't allow you to do that." She got up visibly upset and vocal about it,

"You got your rock, what more do you want?!"

"You have no medical rights on him, I do. He stays."

"But he's-"

"He's staying. He's not going to be transferred to a low-security hospital so his cellist can visit him" Penny was suddenly shocked. Of course he knew. Why wouldn't he? She wasn't precisely the queen of covertness when it came to Patricia and Zoe.

"You stay away from them. They have NOTHING to do with SHIELD. He'll wake up, and you'll discharge him and he'll have a normal life outside of here. You get the rock, he gets his freedom. That was the deal Marcus!"

"Barbara that's enough! _If_ he wakes up, we'll see if he's stable enough to make his own decisions. And if he is, we'll see what _he_ wants to do." Suddenly his desk intercom beeped and Agent Hill's voice came colder than usual. "He's here Sir"

"Send him in" Fury cut the comm. "And stop calling Marcus, we are not in Queens anymore. I'm Director Fury, your Direct. Line. Of. Command. Agent!"

"Then stop calling me Barbara, you're not my mother and I'm not 10 years old anymore!"

"Stop acting as if you were then!"

"SIR!" Steve's tone behind Penny put a stop to their quarrel, and it felt like a direct warning to Fury. Steve cleared his throat. "Do you want me to come back later, Sir?" Oddly enough, the director wasn't upset.

"No need, please sit down" In a swift move while heading back to his side of the desk, Fury quickly dropped the bracelet on Penny's robe. She sighed and started heading outside.

"Doctor Morse, please stay." Penny turned around looking confused at Steve and Fury. But Fury wasn't kidding. She sat down while Rogers stayed up next to her chair.

"Rogers, I called you up because I- we've made a terrible mistake. With you." Fury opened the first drawer of his mahogany desk and pulled out a folder with Steve's name on it.

"Those are your current bank statements, ownership of your bike and enough information for you to be able to rent any flat you'd like." Steve looked at the papers and sighed. He'd want this for long but...

"Also, this is your new passport and driver's license" Steve grabbed it with his other hand and looked at the dates "July 4th... 1981?"

"Yes. 18, 81, we thought it'd be easier to remember." Fury paused "Captain Steven Rogers was your grandfather, MIA in 1945. He had a sweetheart who bore your father, Joseph. He died during the Lebanese Civil War soon after you were born. Your mother died when you were a young boy. Your story's pretty much the same after that. It's all there."

"This sweetheart you're talking about... You mean Major Carter...?"

"No, not Mrs. Carter. This was an assistant for the Strategic Scientific Reserve. Blond, a pretty girl. She died in 1987 and according to our records you knew her. I mean, _your_ _grandfather_ did" Steve remembered her. Actually, he remembered how mad Peggy got when she found them kissing. He couldn't help blushing and clearing his throat.

Penny picked on his blush and their eyes' met briefly. "But Sir that never-"

"Now it did. Captain Rogers is dead. Welcome to your new life Mr. Rogers." Steve kept looking at the papers and at Fury and didn't really understand why Penny was there. He felt tired and excited at the same time but he couldn't help thinking there was a catch. There's always a catch.

He started feeling he was lacking air and that his heart was pounding oddly. He tried to calm down. He hadn't felt that in so long... It couldn't be, no, he was too excited about this, it couldn't be that... He was healthy now, no more asthma, no more heart condition. It couldn't, it just...

He decided to sit down looking at the papers, hiding his distress. Fury was too eager to continue with debriefing them to pick on Steve's sudden change of posture, but Penny's eyes were fixed on him. His shallow uneven breathing... His carotid artery and chest showing a different rhythm...

She hated being right. _Hated it. Hated it. Hated it._ Ok, she was acting like a 10 year old.

Fury continued, "We have arranged for you to have an interview for an arts teacher position. I believe some of your WPA murals are still out there. You should check them out."

"Sir, this is, I'm very grateful Sir, don't get me wrong. But... Why now?"

"We finally decided to listen to Dr. Morse" Penny chuckled in disbelief. "Does that mean you're letting Bruce off the hook too?" Her voice seemed skeptical and rushed. Her long working hours were finally showing.

"_Unfortunately_ Dr. Banner will need to stay within the premises until we can sort out some issues with General Ross' department"

"You mean until you have enough leverage to keep him with us"

"If you want to put it that way Doctor, yes"

"So, asking you to take Bruce as my roommate is out of the question, right Director?"

"I'm afraid so Rogers. He can't be a part of the Avengers either until this is finally settled. Soon I hope. Besides, Dr. Ross will be joining us next week. I'm positive that Dr. Banner will prefer her company to yours"

"You're bringing in Betty? That's great! We can work on Bruce and the Super Soldier form-"

"Dr. Ross is coming to take your place in the team as biochemist Dr. Morse"

"Wh-What?" Fury decided to ignore her for the time being and continued debriefing Steve "As I said before, we should've never locked you up here Rogers, you're an American citizen and a valuable asset. We'd be thrilled to have you in our staff permanently" Fury made a pause. Steve looked at him. _Of course. Work for them. _

Steve looked at Penny, who seemed tired, upset and clenching her teeth. She reminded him once again of Bruce when he tried controlling the other guy.

"I see." Steve paused and saw his new driver's license. "And if I say no..."

"I thank you for everything you've done for this Agency and we'll call you if something requires the Avengers to assemble, which is scarcely happening anymore. Outside of those calls, you're a regular citizen." Fury took out a civilian badge with Steve's photo and placed it in front of him. Subtlety wasn't one of his strong points.

Steve took the badge and looked at it closely, then put it back on the desk. "If I say yes what would I need to do Sir?"

"I was hoping you'd ask that. Unlike Barton or Romanoff, your identity hasn't been compromised. You have all the skills needed for a covert operative. Now, since your Handler is on medical leave for a month, agent Morse will take on her position. If you choose to accept that is"

_Her position. Romanoff. Of course it was her. _"But Sir, I have other tasks that hadn't been completed yet"

"And you'll perform exceedingly as usual agent Morse. I thought you'd be happy being reinstated"

"Am I being reinstated Sir?"

"For the time being. Now you'll be actively handling Rogers. In the event of something new developing, we'll see. You'll need to behave, no crazy stunts Morse." Fury paused. This seemed to be a harder sell than what he had anticipated.

"You'd be in good hands captain. Agent Morse was one of our finest agents. She knows every protocol there is to know and has more clearance than most of the people you've met in the building. She was top of her class and-"

"And also got caught and tortured behind enemy lines. I'm not precisely a role model when it comes to agent performance" Fury got up and leaned over his desk, placing his knuckles firmly on the table.

"Romanoff was my first choice but she's on medical leave. Reagan too. Barton's been assigned to pair with major Danvers. I can't afford losing _more_ active agents on the Avengers initiative. Half of the team is down already." He sighed and looked at Penny. His eyes were no longer ordering but pleading. It only lasted a second but Steve realized then that Fury wasn't just a tough man making tough decisions behind a desk, and he wondered what was truly upsetting him, and why was he reaching out for Penny of all people.

"You were one of the finest agents we had Barbara. And you're on your way out to teach on ESU. Rogers' on the way in. This is temporary, Just do it."

_There was that name she hated again._

"What happens when Romanoff is back on her feet again?"

"We'll work the details as we move forward. Besides Rogers hasn't answered yet." Fury cleared his throat again and looked at Steve "You don't need to answer right away captain, you can sleep on it. I'll need an answer by Monday though."

He got up and stood next to Penny "No need to sleep on it Sir. I'll be happy to work for this agency, and with Dr. Morse. When do we start?"

"Right away. Here-" he brought up another folder. "This is what Romanoff had put together as your base adjustment training. You'll report back on Monday with a revised plan."

"Sir, Pe-Dr. Morse needs to get some rest" Both Penny and Fury looked at Steve with puzzlement.

"I'll be fine Sir. I'll continue to work on my current tasks and have this ready by Monday." Something in Penny's tone had changed. She was detached, matter-of-factly, cold... Even her posture had changed. Fury half smiled and nodded at her.

"Also Sir, I request permission to inform agent Rogers on my current tasks regarding the te-"

"Denied"

"But Sir"

"Denied agent Morse" She clenched her teeth and took a deep breath, looking at Romanoff's folder.

"Before you go, it's come to my attention that you two have developed... certain closeness."

"I'm his doctor Nick"

"Yes Sir, strictly professional"

"Good. I don't need to clarify that this isn't the CIA and we don't look forward in-house couples now, do I?"

"No Sir. We all know SHIELD prefers relationships with trusty civilians based on deceit and lies" Steve had to repress a laugh and could've swore Fury growled at Penny's comment.

"Good. We don't need another Clintasha." Both Steve and Penny nodded. Fury handed over the folder with Steve's adjustment plan to Penny,

"Make sure this doesn't spread Mockingbird."

* * *

As they stepped out, agent Hill came into the office and locked the door behind her. She came close to Fury's desk. "Did they buy it?"

"I doubt it. But their attention will be elsewhere, for a while at least"

"I think you're making a mistake Sir, they're not-"

"They're driven and good at what they do. And they both have an agenda of their own; they'll be too busy to care about ours. What's the status?"

Hill sighed in discomfort "None of the test subjects survived Sir."

"And the stone?"

"It seems to be going dormant Sir. It radiated more energy before Morse took it off of him."

"And he's still irresponsive." He sighed and Hill's nod.

"So the key isn't Rogers' blood. It's Coulson."

"But Sir we can't-"

"Thanks agent Hill. Dismissed" As she was leaving, Hill heard Fury talk to his AI, "Move agent Cheese to substation 2. Declare Pegasus 2 implausible. Communicate to World Security Council."

Fury looked through the window at the city. The day he feared the most was coming too soon, and he only hoped he had put his trust in the right people.


	22. Chapter 22: Together

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers, Spiderman or Green Hornet. **

**Hope you like it! Love to hear what you gotta say!**

* * *

**Chapter 22: Together**

_6 tables wide, 3 rows, lunch special. Offer the lunch special. Focus on your tables but nod to the others. Remember to breath. Balance the plates. DON'T spill drinks on customers. Always bring bread right away. Smile. Don't look panicked. You can do this. _

Mirna smiled at him while giving him the bill for table 10. She nodded to a couple behind him and told him to check their table right away, smirking at him.

She was a nice lady, reminded him of his aunt. She was widow like her, with a hotshot kid at a Boston college and another other one waitressing the rest of the tables. Only she was a bit rounder around the edges, older than aunt May, with a thick German accent. _The other side _of the Wall by the looks of the giant "East Berlin" made clock behind the counter.

They were struggling for money but had a few good ideas to bring more people into the restaurant. And they seemed to be working, at least in the back with louder music and, right, his girlfriend and her new college pals. _So not cool._

Harry Osborn kept on giving him an ear-to-ear grin that only caused him to be more embarrassed. This was Gwen's idea of being a supportive girlfriend. Stay in the back table of the restaurant he had JUST started working with her new BFF from college and the richest guy in campus. _Right. Well, she had to made up after snapping to me for considering working for SHIELD or how I'd call Penny because of my arm and oh sh-_

"Peter, what are you doing here?! " _Frak it frak it frak it._

"Oh hi Pen-Dr. Morse, I um, I, I'm working here. First day today" She smiled at him, seeming pleased. The guy sitting with her gave him a look. A nasty look. _Fishy, he's fishy._

Penny saw how they looked at each other and gave Steve a questioning eyebrow. "Right, well, this is Steve Rogers, we work together and this is Peter Parker, he's a _very _promising student. I'm helping him with… college applications. How's your arm? You shouldn't be carrying things"

"Yeah, well, I need to work, and I'm almost healed, look!" He raised his t-shirt sleeve and Steve recognized highly skilled stitches in a cut that seemed completely healed. He also noticed Penny's surprised look "You _do_ heal fast"

A loud clearing of throat from Mirna on the back of the counter made him remember he was working, not chatting "So, what can I get you? You wanna hear the specials or should I get you ribs?" _So the guy is now clenching his jaw. Yeah, ribs. She likes ribs, I bet you didn't know that tough guy._

The guy spoke "Why don't you bring us the menu and then we'll tell you? Sound okay son?" _Son? Who says "son"? _ Peter nodded leaving the menus and Penny asked him for a beer. Both he and the guy seemed baffled.

"Hey, it's my first day off in I don't know how long, I had a really tough week, I need a beer. Don't judge. I can see you judging." The tough guy smiled. _Smooth, he's smooth. And she's giggling. Giggling. _

The guy spoke "Make that 2 beers then son" and smiled at him. _If he says son one more time…_

Suddenly the table in the back started making way too much noise for a family restaurant, calling everyone's attention and also making Peter get in a tough spot between her new boss and his girlfriend. "Guys, please, could you keep it quiet?"

Steve and Penny watched a cocky brunette guy and a red haired making non-funny jokes and acting drunk. It wasn't even one pm yet: teenage drinking at its finest. Penny was visibly upset about the kid mocking Peter "_in a friendly way"_ and was getting up when Steve grabbed her by the arm. "Don't." She looked at him. "It's his first day and that guy is a jerk yes, but if you go there and you do your "scare him off" routine, you're going to make the kid feel even worse."

She took a deep breath and sat back down, he was right. Steve's hand stayed in her arm though, and then brushed it slowly towards her hand, caressing it slowly. "Peter is 10 thousand times better than that Osborn kid and the asshole comes in here being all big and cool and mocks him! It's just-"

"Let the kid handle it Penn"

"The kid has a name. _Peter._ His name is _Peter."_

"You seem to be close to Peter, those stitches… Was him on the phone yesterday?" She took a deep breath and didn't have to answer. "He's a very good kid and he's struggling with a lot of things right now. He's brilliant and he deserves the future that the shitty Osborn kid is taking for granted. And it pisses me off"

Then they heard Peter, "Some of us need to work for a living Harry. Anything else you want or should I get you the check?" The red haired evidently hit Harry behind the table to make him shut up "Just the check and we'll go. Thanks Pete"

Gwen was upset too, this wasn't working as expected at all. She followed her boyfriend with her eyes when she saw Penny looking right back at her. And then she saw the guy she was sitting with. Kinda cute, if you go for… that type.

Steve looked at Penny "And I assume that's the jealous girlfriend who doesn't really like you. Shocking!" Penny giggled again at this playful version of Rogers. And he hadn't even started drinking yet. _Oh right, he can't get drunk._

"Why _wouldn't_ she like me? I'm coaching her boyfriend to get into college. I mean, he wrote his application essay based on _my _research. If he was my boyfriend, I'd feel happy that the person he looks up to is helping him get there."

"Sure, if the guy you're with has a good looking woman he looks up to on speed dial you'd be thrilled for him. You wouldn't feel threatened at all." Penny sighed and half smiled looking at their fingers entwined.

"Good looking woman? Wow, and you hadn't even started drinking yet. I'm impressed." He couldn't help blushing.

Peter came back to their table clenching his teeth and bringing the beers, "Ready to order?" she half smiled at him for showing up at the perfect time. "Maybe we could have pizza? Goes well with beer" Steve smiled in agreement and then added "Can you get us fries in the meantime? And another round"

Peter nodded and was about to leave for the kitchen when he remembered something and came back "I was gonna call you later. I know how much you like Green Hornet and there's this thing going on tomorrow at ESU campus" he handed over a flyer to her "Mary Jane, the red-haired there, she's gonna be in it. They're acting up old radio shows, putting up the setting as if they were in the 40s or something. I thought you may-"

"Wanna go? Are you kidding? This is awesome, thanks Pete! Wanna go Steve? It's old radio shows, just like in the 40s!" _I'm clearly missing the joke here. Well, she seems happy enough with this jog. Ok, you're not disappointed. Well, maybe a bit. I mean, he must be smart, she wouldn't go for that type. She likes Helo for Gods' sake, she wouldn't go for the jog. No, there has to be something else going on about this guy. _He took off before hearing Steve's answer to Penny.

"So would this outing be part of my _adjustment training _agent Bobbi?" He leaned over the table nearer her, looking amused. "You're never gonna stop calling me that now, are you?"

"Nope" She sighed and gave him a questioning eyebrow. "It kinda brings bad memories" He reached for her hand again "I'm sorry, I didn't know"

She gave him a timid smile "It's okay, it's time to stop whining about it, it's my name after all. So, you don't have an embarrassing middle name I can retort with, do you?" He half smiled keeping her hand on his and caressing it slowly "Nope I don't miss Morse. So, where is this place?" he grabbed the flyer to read it.

"ESU campus. They have a good art program, maybe you could take classes there, get an art degree. It could help with your cover."

"Cover?"

"You know how I wrote papers and I'm heading to ESU to teach next year? That's my cover. You build something believable and stick to it. And when you have a rough spy day, you wish that the cover would be your real life. That is, until you get burnt and your wish comes true" she took a sip of beer suddenly looking pissed and disappointed.

"But now you're my _active _handler agent Morse, and you're asking me on a date to watch radio shows"

"It's not a date Rogers, don't get ahead of yourself. I just love radio shows! And these were happening back when you were _back there_"

"I know you love radio shows, you told me a while ago. What I don't get is why" She was starting to get anxious about his grin right now. What wasn't she remembering? "When did I-?"

"Oh that day, when you were at the beach" He laughed wholeheartedly and she couldn't stop looking at his lips when he talked, she didn't even realize she was biting her own. "Cheers Dr. Morse. Here's to… What should we toast to?"

She grabbed her own beer and leaned on the table as well, "Well, to your newly found almost freedom"

"At least I don't have a Cinderella clause anymore"

"I'll drink to that" they toasted and took a long sip. She leaned back on the booth, hanging on to the little bottle. "You gotta tell me what I said that day one of these days" he chuckled,

"Not a chance, this is much too fun Doctor!" He took a sip while lowering his gaze from her eyes to her full lips. She realized she was biting them and cleared her throat taking another sip. "So, wanna go to this thing?" He smiled leaving the Bud on the table "Sure, I'll be at your doorstep at 8"

"Don't you need my address for that?" He grabbed the Bluetooth from his pocket and placed it on the table. She nodded with a half smile. He leaned back on his own booth and they shared a long quiet stare while they kept on sipping quietly and smiling to each other.

* * *

"Hey beautiful, how you feeling?" Clint was brushing her cheek slowly and she smiled at him. She could see his swallowed eyes from crying. "You gave me quite a scare you know"

"I told him not to call you" her voice was rougher than usual and she seemed a bit sad. He didn't like what he was seeing in her. "Well, you know how Captain Tightpants is. So I borrowed a Quinjet and got here."

She sighed. She was expecting him to ask what was going on, but she figured he wouldn't. "I'm a bit thirsty, could you get- thanks" he put a straw in her mouth and she started drinking slowly "You shouldn't drink much, doctor's orders"

"Where is she?" Clint frowned puzzled at her. "She has the weekend off, met Fury and then left"

"Oh, okay"

"Tash, what's going on?"

"I just had surgery Clint, everything's fuzzy. A little understanding wouldn't hurt" she tried to move from the bed but he held her down. "You need to rest, you're to stay here tonight and possibly tomorrow, and then rest for another 2 weeks."

"WHAT? We have Mandarin on the loose and a billion other things, she can't expect me to just sit here and do nothing!"

"Now that sounds more like you. For the record, Hoban's the one who said that"

"Does Fury know this? He-"

"He cleared you for the next month and more if you don't cooperate. He also gave me a week off to make sure you follow suit." She stopped fighting getting off the bed; mainly because her IV was moving and she started feeling what her tummy felt like without a steady dosage of painkillers.

"Does that mean we're partners again?" her IV hand reached for his, and he caressed it slowly while gesturing a no with his head. His eyes were suddenly teary.

"You scared me Natasha. Don't ever do that again" and there she felt her own tears piling up in the back of her eyes and the choke in her throat. It was over, it was over now, why was she still acting like this fragile little shit?

In a swift move, Clint shaded the glass walls, locked the door and came to lie in bed next to her. She moved a bit to the side and rested her head on his arm, still holding her tears.

"You can cry Tash, I won't tell" he placed his other arm around her and started kissing her hair softly. She took a deep breath and came nearer him but her tummy ached too much. He moved his arm towards her belly and started touching it slowly over the sheets, but Natasha stiffened.

"Don't do that"

"You were pregnant, weren't you? The other thing, that's a cooked up story." Tasha's clenched jaw gave her away. "What makes you think that?"

"Don't lie to me Tash, just don't. I'm here for you. Don't ever forget that"

"I'd like to be alone"

"That's too bad, cos I'm not going anywhere. Now get some sleep" he kept hugging her and kissing her hair slowly. She hated feeling like this. She hated even more knowing that he was right. She needed him with her, like the air she was breathing.

But needing someone gets you reckless. It gets you pregnant. It gets you killed.


	23. Chapter 23: Devoid

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers.**

* * *

**Chapter 23: Devoid**

"There's no sign of them. The earth swallowed Mandarin and Maya. This fucker has taken her and Jarvis can't find any trace of them. And your um, employers can't either. They would've told me, I went from "Consultant" to "Running point" on recovering Mandarin. Whatever the hell that means in their stupid jargon. Can't they just talk like normal people?"

"So you're the average Jason Bourne now?"

"Oh no, I have class. And a building with my name on it. Bourne couldn't afford that. Speaking of the building- how about you and I go there? Pepper had this crazy idea about making it the _Avengers_ _tower_ or something"

"Oh your ego must be devastated by now. So, a building? For us?"

"Well, don't overdo it now, but, yeah, why not? Has a lot of floors, you could probably have 10 each."

"I don't think Fury would _allow _it. I can't even leave this fucking building now."

"But your best friend here has his own flying device you know, I could swoon you out of here. Literally, just call me."

"I may take you up on that one of these days" He took deep breaths, Tony poured two glasses of whisky and came nearer him, inadvertently checking his pupils. Bruce couldn't help feeling watched and angry that Tony was doing that too.

"The green guy is giving you trouble?" _**We need to go, you need to let us free. **_

"It's getting… tricky. Life is not so great right now, but hey, Betty's coming to the office and that's supposed to fix everything"

"Whose idea was that? Oh, let me guess, Captain Tightpants' girlfriend" _If you'd only shut up right now._

"Stop that, she means well, I know, but I don't want Betty on harm's way and if she's close to me, well, you know how things go" Tony took a long sip looking intently at his friend: dark circles under his eyes, untouched food on the back desk, loosen up shirt that fit perfectly a week ago... He could pick on a meltdown when he saw one.

"You know if you get tired of the sweet deal you got going on here you can always come to _my_ R&D section, I even changed the building to have ceilings tall enough to fit uhm, _the other you_"

"I don't think _the other guy _is into science" he was about to toss yet another pad towards the glass wall but Tony grabbed it mid-air. _**We have to go, what are we waiting for?!**_

"Your reflexes _are _better with that crap on you, aren't they?"

"Oh yeah, Pepper's loving it" _Oh fuck you Tony._

"Could you not gloat in front of the guy who can't have sex? Thank you"

"Yeah, about that. I was thinking, maybe now that you control better your other charming personality you could-"

"I'm not risking it. And lately…" Bruce whispered "I don't who's in control anymore" Tony drank Bruce's glass in one shot and poured another. "I'm all ears"

Bruce gazed at the camera in the corner "So are they." Bruce showed him the screen he was working on and Tony came nearer, looking amazed at the formulas and rates in front of him "Banner, you've been a naughty boy"

* * *

Fury was looking intently at Norman Osborn's speech on live television. His sugarcoated attacks towards the Avengers and SHIELD were shifting towards a more direct approach, making subtle but clear accusations to the Agency's ulterior motives.

Osborn's tie was crooked, his hairdo was uneven. Odd, his PR person was all in the details. Osborn had both of his hands on the stand. His hands… something clicked on Fury's head and he zoomed the video to have a closer look. Osborn's nails weren't dark blue anymore due to his heart condition; his hands weren't pale or wrinkled anymore. He took some screenshots and saved them on a pendrive.

Osborn's speech was finally coming to an end, receiving cheers from the crowd. Fury took a long breath and stared at the little device on his hand. He put it in his pocket when someone knocked on the door.

"What can I do for your Dr. Hoban?"

"Banner's reaching a peak, he had another seizure. I was able to retrieve samples and crossed checked them with what I could find in our database, which _isn't_ much and his ratio is… disturbing"

"Have you run this through Dr. Morse?"

"No, I came directly to you. She's- She's compromised. Her closeness towards her marks is blurring her judgment" Fury gave him a piercing look "You disapprove"

"I don't disapprove of her attachment; I disapprove of your methods. She wasn't ready for this. Do you want them all dead? Because Dr. Hulk is one tantrum away from wrecking this entire facility!"

"Watch your tone agent Hoban." He took a deep breath. "Do you think she knows this is happening?"

"Yes, and she probably swept it under the rug like everything that's happening to that team"

"Alright, keep me posted." Hoban waited for any other order. _Nothing_. Fury was okay with this. How could he be okay with this?

"Anything else Dr. Hoban?" he clenched his teeth. "Agent Romanoff was pregnant sir"

"I'm aware of that" Hoban was thrown off by his knowledge. He was hesitant; he wasn't sure whether he should let Fury know of his other suspicious since it could land Penny in big trouble but ultimately, this was bigger than them. "I think there's something going on with Rogers"

"I'm also aware of his closeness with Dr. Morse and it is being handled." Hoban came nearer the desk "No, it's not that. I think he's deteriorating." Fury's eyes widened astonished. "Ok, talk."

* * *

There is something missing, I can feel it. They've taken you away and now I'm here, waiting. Waiting for what's missing. All the sky and the stars, the city in the clouds, nothing can replace what's missing.

And you know it. You know there's something about me that you don't understand. That's why you're still here, that's why you hadn't left, that's why you hadn't turned like the rest. I beat you.

I intrigued you and for that you've changed. As much as I have with everything you taught me.

But I still feel, I still care, _I still want, I still love_. I'm still here and I'm still me. I don't know how it'll be if I ever leave this place, I'm scared, I admit it. But that's something else you'd like to feel, isn't it? You'd love to feel what I feel. That's why I'm not dead: you think you can use me to see what that's like.

But I won't let you use me to hurt them. I will find a way to destroy you if you hurt them.

But I don't think you know what you want. I think that, strangely enough, you're confused. Yes, you are confused. You were supposed to do something but now you're trapped with me. Only, I think this is by choice now. Are you developing feelings of your own?

I do nothing but think, I'm going insane, and you won't talk to me. You'd just show me things, ask me questions without words and see my memories.

I need my life back. Please, I need my life back. I have a job, a family, a daughter I've never seen.

Nothing huh? Threats won't work. Pleading won't work. I guess you're waiting for what I'm missing too. But what will happen then? What will you do?

I feel tired. I miss you in my chest. But you're not the reason why I feel something is missing, no. My chest hurts because I miss them. I miss _them_. All of them.

I wish you'd let me move and explain I'm still here, that you didn't beat me, that you didn't change me like you changed them.

I wish I could move and find her and hold her close to me. I hope you won't hurt her. I hope she'd let me apologize and explain what happened. I want to see her brown wavy hair in the sun. I want to breathe her in and I want to hold my baby girl. I wonder if she looks like her mother, I hope she does, I hope she grows as beautiful as her, with her brown hair and eyes. How can I love this much someone I hadn't even met yet?

Here they are again; they're taking me somewhere else. I can hear them when they speak to me, and when they think I'm not listening. I prefer it that way. I can know what they're up to this way. All the bad decisions they're making. I should be here helping them, stopping them from making everything worse.

And what about my blond little girl? I left her all alone and she has to take of everyone now. I promised her I'd never leave her and I did. I never said goodbye.

I have to wake up. You have to let me wake up. Please, how much longer are you gonna leave me here?

_You are the one who'll decide when to awake, not me. And when you do, we'll grow together, entwined._

Agent Coulson was being moved towards Substation 2 when the elevator's energy was shut down. The nurse checked his vitals and he seemed to remain in his comatose state, just as he had been since the incident. Lights came back up and the elevator started moving up again. That's when she saw that his brain activity had peaked briefly and now it was back to normal. No movement, no response to stimuli.

The nurse disregarded it and moved the patient to his new room, blaming the elevator jam to the energy blackouts they had been having the last few days.


	24. Chapter 24: Tangled

**Disclaimer: I don't own Avengers, Spidey, The green hornet or Romeo and Juliet. Yes, I went there.**

**Longest chapter yet (romance is definitely my thing, sorry!) I'd love to hear what you have to say!**

* * *

**Chapter 24: Tangled**

The old alarm clock blinked with a 7:30 PM. She knew he was probably already downstairs waiting, and she was still in her underwear, staring at her 3 clothing choices over the neatly done bed.

Brown dress with white polka dots, cute trousers with a wide boat neck cardigan or the blue backless dress she'd never had the guts to wear after the gashes she got in Lviv.

It was winter for Christ's sake. And it was a stupid indie theater thing. _And it's not a gorram date._

She was zipping up her boots while putting on the mascara and combing her hair when she heard someone opening the door with keys. She instinctively went for the concealed gun under the sink (she was, after all still a spy, and guns could be found as easily as chocolate in this place… If you knew where to look).

Before she'd take aim at the door a rough familiar voice spoke, "Hunny, I'm home". She put the safe back on, placed the gun on her waist in the back of her trousers and put the sweater on. "One, what the _hell _are you doing here? And two, how the _hell _did you get my keys Clint?"

"Have I ever told you how beautiful you look when you're upset? Going somewhere?"

"As a matter of fact, yes. Keys, please?" He handed them over.

"Well, someone had to have your spare keys"

"Probably, but not by making a copy of them without my permission while I'm unconscious at the hospital! Now get out!"

"Wow, I just got here! And I brought a six pack of your favorite" She grabbed the beers and put them in the fridge while he came closer to her from behind and took the gun, taking an extra second to brush through her back. She really tried not to feel a shiver down her spine when he did that.

"That sweater becomes you. My bet is first date, nerd from the 9th?"

"Nope, and it's not a date" She was closing the fridge but took a second and got a beer. "None for me? You're a meany"

"I thought you were leaving" she looked at the clock over the kitchen counter "As in RIGHT NOW Clint"

"Oh, your date is coming to pick you up! Classy!"She took a sip and then grabbed the gun from his hand and switched it for the beer bottle "What do you want?"

"Well, now that you ask… My leave has just been revoked and I need you to look after Tas-Natasha for me" she snorted. "Sure Clint, want me to call the World Security Council and get world peace sorted out for you too?" She started walking towards her room to get her warm coat.

"Well, you two seem to be in cohorts keeping the pregnancy from me, so, maybe you're buddies now" She stood on cold "Pregnancy?"

"Please, not you too Nell." She turned around "I'll do my best to keep her out of trouble." She paused "So, _all_ of you are leaving?" Her sudden change of tone gave her away "No… Oh! You're going out with _Tightpants_, aren't you? I think I'll stay around until-"

The doorbell rang and she whispered a curse in Chinese. "Behave Barton. I'm warning you"

"Whatcha gonna do? Punish me? Oh, _please do_" It'd be too easy making him bleed right now. But no, he'd enjoy that. "She's into that. I never was, remember?" He cleared his throat at the same time he brought her closer to him.

"I remember you naked next to the fireplace in Aspen, and how you-" There was a low knock on the door now.

"I'll look after your _girlfriend_ while you're gone, Clint." He let go of her and she went to the door "Coming! Hi St" When she saw Steve, she suddenly forgot her ex husband was standing right next to her behind the door. Actually, she forgot the entire English language for a whole minute.

Steve's hair was shorter, his stubble framing his jaw and he was smiling shyly to her. He was wearing dark brown tailored pants with stripes and the light brown cardigan only highlighted his blue eyes. _Wow._

"Oh look, you kids have matching overcoats! You cleaned up nicely Rogers" _Yeah, that little detail._

"Barton was just leaving, please come in Steve." He felt incredibly stupid for being holding a roses bouquet when he was clearly interrupting something. The men didn't move and she sighed angered. Of course Barton had to come in and screw everything up, that's what he did, every _fraking_ time.

"Clint, please go, I'll look after Romanoff." Clint crossed his arms in front of his chest; this was too much fun to let it go so quickly.

"Wait, you're leaving?" Steve's frown was confusing "Unless you want me to chaperon your date"

"I didn't mean that"

"Oh, I know. It's _not_ a date. She mentioned it. Want a beer?" Steve's eyes flickered with disappointment.

"Clint. Go. _NOW_." Her clenched jaw and feisty eyes could only mean _you're in deep shit._ He knew that look, it was the one fiery look she had. And trust me, she delivered.

"Ok, I'm going, fine, taking the beer with me though." Rogers followed him with his eyes "Weren't you staying for a week?"

"We had a hit on Mandarin in Indonesia. Stark's running point and Fury wants Danvers and I to babysit, or _support_ or whatever. You kids have fun." He started going down the stairs "Oh and Rogers, she _hates_ roses. Next time get her carnations or daisies."

Her clenched jaw watching her ex walking away was all he could see. He felt silly and stupid and old fashioned and as if he was wearing someone else's clothes. This was a terrible idea...

She took a deep breath and shook her head "Don't mind him. They're lovely flowers. Do come on in" She brushed his arm and he followed her in. She closed the door behind him, grabbed the flowers and put them in a vase with water. She looked at them and half smiled, the clenched jaw gone from her expression "That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet." A small feeling of hope started feeling his chest, as he continued her line,

"o Romeo would, were he not Romeo call'd,  
Retain that dear perfection which he owes"

She beamed at him and started taking small steps from the sink towards the end of the kitchen island where he was standing, making a playful British voice "Retain that dear perfection which he owes  
Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name;  
And for that name, which is no part of thee,  
Take all myself"

He shortened the little distance between them and rushed the next lines holding her hand to his chest,  
"I take thee at thy word.  
Call me but love, and I'll be new baptiz'd;  
Henceforth I never will be Romeo"

She sighed looking intently at his eyes "A man that knows his Shakespeare, nice"

"I helped with the staging when I was in college. It stuck on my head" Her hand was still over his cardigan and his were holding hers there. She didn't want to move. She didn't want to leave. She didn't want to stop this from happening… But she had very clear orders, her feelings didn't matter.

So she pat him slowly on the chest (or stroke was more like it) and told him she'd get her purse "Make yourself at home, I'll be right back" His mouth quirked in a half smile.

The small flat seemed so warm and… _normal_. The kitchen island separating the cooking place from the tiny wooden walled living room was spacious to cook (which she seemed to like to do by the smell of cookies); the half wall of books, the relatively small flat TV screen with several DVDs... It felt like a home. He couldn't help but wonder why she slept on that ragged sofa at work so many times a week when she had this place to come back to.

He came nearer the yellowish-apricot couch that seemed to be from his time, and saw a book on the coffee table, next to a Green Hornet DVD box. He grabbed the little blue-cover book and a small black and white picture fell from it. He picked it up and saw a woman with fair wavy hair smiling closely to a dark haired man who was hugging her from behind. The man's face was sideways kissing her ear, concealing most of his face. The woman looked just like her, though she had thinner lips and her chin was different.

"That's my mom. _Was_ my mom" He felt as if he was intruding again "I'm sorry, I" she shook her head and grabbed the picture and the book, putting it carefully inside of it again and into its spot in the bookshelf. She felt his warmth close behind her but not close enough to brush her. She had a shiver running through her spine again and there was nothing she wanted more than to give in to it. He spoke softly near her ear "I think we should get going if we want to make it on time"

She turned around and looked intently at his eyes, nodded and started walking towards the door "Yeah, you're right, and we gotta get the tickets too. Oh, and... I'm sorry about the whole Barton drama before, he's a dick sometimes" He ignored the Barton reference "I already got the tickets on my way here" She smiled and reached up to press a kiss to his cheek but he moved ever so slightly when he saw her near that her lips ended in the corner of his mouth "You're the best Rogers" He hesitated for a second and that's all it took for her to pretend nothing had happened and start opening the door.

"Oh well, let's see what you say when you realize we're going in the bike" He took a deep breath half smiling and thought that though the night had just started, so far it was looking promising.

~oOo~

The bike ride went well, with her arms clenched tightly around his waist and the feeling of her body pressed against his back. The theater was neatly staged and everyone from the usher to the actors seemed to have been taken from the 1940s. The hair, the wardrobe, the music in the background: everything seemed to take him back to 1945.

The actors delivered a good performance and the kid's –no, _Peter's_ friend seemed to be very passionate about her craft. His date-no_, his friend_ was looking around trying to spot the kid but he was at the diner working. Once they were outside of the venue, they found themselves in the middle of a full-blown campus festival, band included.

Walking through the doors into the open space of the festival (right by the peer) felt a bit like waking up 70 years in the future again. The difference was that this time he knew where he was, and the best of all is that when Penny saw his sudden hesitation, she held his hand and didn't let go of it for most of the evening.

There was food, draught beer and the band was rather good, though he didn't really know any songs. They were sitting at a tall half wall and laughing about stories when he remembered why this place seemed so familiar. "Is that building over there the dock from my time?" She was finishing her 4th red cup of beer while he was around his 10th now. "Yup, it has a basketball court now. Why?" He jumped off the little wall and grabbed her by her waist to help her down, "Come, I want to show you something. I hope it's still there" They were still holding hands by the time he tried forcing the door opened. "Okay Mr. Big Soldier, I need to show you a thing or two about the subtleties of being a spy. Case and point" She grabbed one of her hair clips and checked if there were any cameras. _None. Sweet._ She opened the lock in less than a minute (she made him keep track) and they shared slow giggles all the way up to where he stopped. "Here we are. They've kept it! Swell!"

She looked at the mural. The colors, the people's expressions, they were of such subtlety and kindness... it was moving. And he had done that. She tried taking it all and shivered slightly. Soon enough she felt his arms hugging her from behind and his warmth on her back. She wasn't supposed to relax in his arms; she wasn't supposed to let this happen. She had orders. They had orders.

"So you did this?"

"My _grandfather_ did, yes" he whispered, his lips just grazing her ear. She stroked his arm slowly and then realized their fingers were interlocked. "This is beautiful Steve"

"You are beautiful" Turning around and kissing him passionately was _not_ an available option. Instead she chuckled and turned around trying to put some distance between them "You're drunk, let's go"

She was standing in front of him, trying to make him move towards the door but he stood still. His thumb brushed her lower lip slowly and she couldn't help looking at him sheepishly while biting her lower lip. It'd break both of their hearts, but it had to be done. He tilted his head and was about to kiss her when,

"Don't" she looked down trying to conceal her distress and in his confusion he let go of her. "Let's go back, c'mon" He knew she wanted this as much as him, so why was she pushing him away? Yes, Fury had warned them against this, but it was more of a challenge than anything else. "You'll have to give me more than that"

She took a deep breath, she really didn't wanna do this. "I'm damaged goods Rogers. I'm full of secrets and lies. It's hard to know what's real and what's a cover anymore. You don't wanna do this with me, trust me." She started walking away towards the band, "I know SHIELD's setting me up. All of the sudden they gave me everything I wanted, including an excuse to be close to you." She stood on dry. "I will figure out what's going on, I'm not as naive as everyone thinks." He came closer to her from behind, brushing her arms slowly "I also know there's a lot more about you than what Fury and you pretend there is. I can only hope that one day you trust me enough to tell me."

She turned around trying to hide the sadness from her eyes "You're better off Rogers, really. I'm sorry" She walked away towards the pier while he stood there thinking of everything she's said. He was upset, angry, but most of all, he was hurt. He followed her quietly and his head started feeling clogged again. Maybe she was right; maybe he was getting drunk now.

He thought of going home – well, going to SHIELD but the band was still playing and he still felt like he had to take her home. _Idiotic, old fashioned and pointless. _He bought another beer and stared at her from the distance. When he was half way through the cup, Peter came nearer him "You guys argued?"

Steve looked at him, seeing concern in Peter's eyes "What makes you think that?"

"Well, you're sulking over a glass of cheap beer and she's over there staring at the water. Go and take her for a spin, she'd love that." Steve sighed, he was upset and this kid seemed to know it all. "How would you know?"

Peter rolled his eyes annoyed "She's a chick, they all love that. And today she wouldn't stop talking about being here with you, so"

"Today?" Peter realized he had said too much "Yeah, I was, we were um training. She's teaching some moves, you know, self-defense kind of thing. No big deal" Steve realized he was right in thinking there was a lot more about this kid than what met the eye. I guess it was another one of her secrets.

"Just go to her, you both want to. Also, don't be a jerk with her, or I'll kick your ass." Steve snorted and looked down on him. "Don't give me that look, I _could_ kick your ass tough guy" Steve half smiled.

"I'll keep that in mind" he sighed and started walking slowly towards her, leaning over the pier wall next to Penny. They shared a quiet moment and then she snorted, "Gosh, that's the cheesiest song in the world" They shared a glance and he grabbed her hand and gestured towards where couples were dancing. She gave him a questioning eyebrow but started walking all the same. Her coat was unbuttoned so he placed his free hand over her waist, feeling her skin through the blouse. He thought of apologizing for his lack of talent in the dancing department but decided against it when she came nearer him with a tender smile. After a little while he leaned a bit and kissed her hair, keeping a tight grasp around her waist as she moved her own hands inside his overcoat, brushing his back slowly.

She could feel his heart pounding as fast as hers. _One night, just one night. _

But they couldn't. Not now. Not just yet. _Maybe never. _

The song was over and they had to break their embrace. She looked tired and conflicted, and he didn't want to go through that talk again "I think I should take you home, it's getting late" She smiled and then saw him grabbing his keys. "Oh no, you're not driving."

"What?"

"You're drunk! We're taking a cab!" There was her matter-of-fact tone again. He clenched his jaw. "I'm not drunk, my system goes 4 times faster than average_, I Can't Get Drunk_"

"As your _friend_" he clenched his jaw even worse at that word "and your handler, and your doctor I call the shots right now. You're not driving. Period"

"I'm not-" His surroundings started moving way too fast all of the sudden and she caught him "Ok, maybe you have a point" His arm was around her arms and she was holding him the best she could "I think it's best if you stay in my couch tonight" A million thoughts rushed through his head and he gestured a no with his head. "If you walk into SHIELD like this, there goes your short lived life in espionage" He looked at her, then nodded and off they went.

When they were heading up the stairs towards her apartment, he spoke "So I'm drunk?" She started opening the door, "Apparently so Mr" He stood on cold looking gloom and rested his back on the wall "Steve what is it?" In a swift move he closed the door and looked at her intently with playful eyes while bringing her closer to him "I can blame this on the beer in the morning then"

Suddenly she was the one against the wall and Steve's lips were rushing a kiss over hers. He was about to pull away and apologize when he heard her dropping her purse to the floor and felt her arms around his neck. Their kiss deepened with wanting and need, both of them panting while he held her pinned against the wall. When he finally pulled away, he gave her a cute kiss on the tip of her nose, while grinning. She smiled with one corner of her mouth, "You don't give up. Do you?"

"Nope" His lips came nearer hers again and when he was about to kiss her for a second time, he walked away and cleared his throat, leaving her wanting for more. He couldn't help sniggering. "Right, you want nothing to do with me. Good night agent Morse" he took off his overcoat and hung it next to the door while she kept staring at him with playful eyes and her arms crossed over her chest.

He sat on the couch and spoke again, "Aren't you going to sleep agent Morse?" She came near him, sitting on the couch's arm. He looked at her holding his grin when she placed her fingers over his lips, her playful eyes gone. "I never said what _I_ wanted Steve"

She brushed his lips with her thumb and kissed him intensely, biting his lower lip and then kissing the corner of his mouth while her hand wondered around his neck and on his shirt buttons. Another brush of her lips, this time on his jaw, then on his neck, reaching his ear lobe. Then she whispered, her lips grazing his ear "Sleep tight Rogers, don't let the bed bugs bite" and walked away towards her room grinning mischievously.

He took a deep breath and smiled while lying on the sofa. Yes, the night had definitely turned out good.


	25. Chapter 25: Edge

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers or Spidey. **

**Thanks for the reviews! Don't be shy and let me know what you think!**

* * *

**Chapter 25: Chaos**

He opened his eyes, but the sun coming through the window blinded him, that and the throbbing headache. It took him a moment to remember where he was. He heard quick typing and sounding humming a tune, way too loud.

He raised his head over the sofa and saw her. She was sitting at the kitchen island, facing him with her laptop and a steamy mug of coffee next to her. "Good morning" he said, shrinking his eyes.

"Good morning sleepy head" Was she screaming now? He covered his ear "Oh, you have an epic hangover, don't you?" He nodded with his eyes half closed.

"Your phone's been ringing nonstop, you may wanna check it", while he sat on the couch he noticed he was covered with a blanket that wasn't there the night before. She came near him carrying a steamy mug. "Drink up"

He saw he had 5 missed calls from Bruce and two from Tony. _That _couldn't be good. Then his phone started vibrating: call number 3 from Stark. Penny stayed by his side when he picked up "Good morning sunshine, how are you today?"

"What happened Stark?"

"Didn't get lucky last night? Hey Barton, he didn't get lucky. So, you in the office yet?"

"No, not yet"

"Ok, maybe he got to 2nd base. So, Bruce was working on some stuff and I'm _pretty sure_ he's gonna screw up"

"Why are you so sure?"

"Didn't he call you? He just called me, sounded like a goodbye. It was a very suicide line kinda call. I'd fly back there if I was remotely close, but I figured you were in his same building. Or close enough"

"Thanks for the heads up"

"No biggie, let me know what happens" Since she overheard half of the conversation, she got her own phone and called Bruce, while she brought his stats on her notebook. She had been so distracted by her recurrent nightmares and Steve getting drunk that she had failed to check on him.

"Bruce, hi! Really? Well, I beat you to it! Whatup?" She gave Steve a concerned look, while typing frantically at the keys. He came closer to her and she showed him the stats. His ratios were rising way too fast. If he didn't calm down soon...

Bruce could figure out what she was doing from the other end of the line. "Penny, I'm okay. I just wanted to call to-"

"Yes Bruce?" He took a deep breath.

He was at her office, and saw the things the geek from the 9th floor had left there the day before. Her new Bluetooth, a heart rate monitor watch and a seemingly harmless pen that was supposed to be handled carefully. He was intrigued as to what the thing could do.

"Your friend Stan, from the 9th, he dropped you some stuff yesterday. Also, I- well, if something happens to me-"

She sighed "Bruce... Betty is gonna be here tomorrow, what.." Another high pulse. Steve took the phone from her ear "Bruce, hey Bruce, yeah it's me. Well, Penny and I have something to tell you"

Bruce quieted down the other guy in his head for a minute "I take it the date went well?"

"Yup. But hey, we wanna see you. We were heading that way actually, you know, workoholics"

"Steve, don't-"

"Just give us 20 minutes. Wait for us to get there. Please Bruce" she rushed to the door getting the car keys on the way and joggling the notebook.

"Steve you can't talk me out of this, I need to end this. I have to. Betty's coming tomorrow and I'm terrified of hurting her. And my office is right next to Penny's! What if I lose control and I hurt her?"

"That won't happen Bruce, we're on our way and we'll help okay? Please Bruce, just wait for us, we're almost there"

While driving frantically through the city, Steve kept trying to keep Bruce on the phone and Penny kept on grabbing things from her glove compartment and from under the seat. By the time they got to SHIELD she had the familiar bracelet she had used on him, a similar one on the other wrist and had given him a stun gun that "could put us all to sleep for a week, luckily it'll put him down for 15 minutes"

When they were heading upstairs, an alarm started ringing. By the time they reached the 10th floor, it was locked with thick metal walls no one had seen before.

Romanoff was standing right next to them, suited up, looking up to an air vent above her. "Oh cap, could you help me up?" Penny looked at Steve "Romanoff, you're still on- you should be resting"

"We have a potential Hulk next to your office. He turned in the protocol himself. Cap, please?" Penny gave him another look; similar to the one she had the night before when talking to Barton.

Natasha should be resting. There was no doubt about that. "Sure Natasha, let me help" He came close to her and try holding her down, long enough for her to do her classic grip. During that second when she was putting Steve down, Penny managed to sting her with her bracelet.

"I'm sorry Romanoff but I promised to keep you out of trouble" She looked at the doctor before passing out "You bit-" they took her to a side of the corridor, away from any potential havoc and they went through the air ventilation, coming out right in the middle of the floor.

"You know, you could've just let us in, these clothes were new" Bruce looked at his friend, his brown eyes gone. "You're late"

Steve shielded Penny behind him but she wouldn't have it. "Well, traffic is hell on Sundays. So, what's the game plan? Snap and break down half of the city? General Ross will be in your ass in 10 minutes tops Bruce" They slowly got closer to him "Fury didn't want to stress you even more but if he doesn't find _something_ to pin on Ross he may be able to get to you, and that's why he made the stupid mistake of locking you up. Please let us help. Whatever it is you're planning, how do you know it'd work?"

"_**Cos we tested it" **_that wasn't Bruce's voice anymore. It was harsh, grave, filled with anger and pain. Penny and Steve couldn't help flinching. "Bruce, if you don't calm down soon, whatever it is you want to do is not gonna happen. Hulk is gonna take over"

"No he won't. I can control him now, remember?" His eyes were lime green and he was reaching for something on his pocket. It was a little flask "Bruce, what is that?" Penny was unconsciously getting into a defense position while Steve reached for Bruce's hand.

"_**Don't Rogers"**_ Steve found himself shoved against the glass wall. "Bruce stop! He got drunk last night, he's weak!" She rushed to Steve and he was still conscious, though his throbbing hangover headache was amplified now, and there was a small cut on the back of his head. Bruce seemed to be fighting with himself. He stopped reaching for his pocket and started hitting his own head. "I'm- I'm-sorry Steve. _**Stop that we need to go" **_She pressured the wound while keep talking to Bruce."I'm gonna get near you now, okay?" Bruce looked at her with his green defiant eyes. "Are you gonna push me too?"

A new alarm started ringing, driving Bruce crazier. "That means Fury's coming Bruce. Hear me out: we can stop this, right now. We can say it was an episode and that's it. We can work together on this, whatever this is" Steve aimed at Bruce with the gun, took the shot but didn't hit Bruce. His skin was thicker, the dart bounced.

"This is the third dosage in 36 hours, there's no way back now" Penny froze, how could she have missed it? This was her fault, she had been careless again. "It's a self-awareness formula. It will make both of us aware of one another fully" If Hulk was indeed the dominant personality, Bruce may disappear for good. And she wasn't sure if Bruce's mind was truly that strong. She was pale "Penny, I know my chances. This will work. I have to do things and I can't do them here. And I can't keep risking everyone. I need to put an end to this."

She was about to snitch the flask from his hand but Bruce pushed her towards Steve, making her hit against one of the desks. _**"We are sorry, but we can't let you stop us. You'll find us soon."**_

She had fallen over her arm and her shoulder was aching terrible, her head was now buzzing too and was a bit disoriented but her sight was clear enough to see how her friend stabbed himself in the heart with a needle. It was too late, Bruce talked to them, one last time, "Steve, get out of here, NOW!"

Steve looked at him and grabbed Penny, helping her to the other side of the floor "We will find you Bruce, before Ross does. Try not to hurt people" Bruce was turning and it was loud and messy and seemed painful. Penny couldn't think of anything to do, it was too late.

By the time they reached the metal wall on the front, Fury and a swat team was coming through and Natasha was being carried to the hospital wing.

Loud crashing noises behind them queued Fury on Hulk heading outside. Steve's head was bleeding and Penny's left shoulder seemed dislocated. Fury made his men stop and talked, "It's too late now, he's out"

Steve nodded while Penny looked down holding her arm. "Rogers, I'll need you to brief me in after getting that cut checked. Dr. Morse, you have other tasks outside to take care of. _Now_." She gestured at her arm and looked puzzled. Fury waited for her to make the connection.

Other tasks. Outside. Now.

Peter was gonna try to stop Hulk, of course. She nodded and rushed to what was left of her desk where Stan had left the stuff. She found the new Bluetooth and headed off past Steve, who grabbed her by her arm, causing her to moan a bit. "You can't go. You need a doctor more than me"

Fury clenched his jaw, grabbed her arm and put her shoulder back in place. She repressed a scream. "She'll be fine" She nodded with teary eyes and took off without a second glance at Steve.

"What's going on Fury?"

"It's need to know basis. You don't need to know. People, prep up, we're in pursue" and with that, he walked away.

~oOo~

Tracking the Hulk through the city was rather easy. He was heading north, no idea where, but North, trying to avoid big crowds, not that he could hide, he was the _frakking_ Hulk after all.

Getting a hold of Peter on the other hand: tricky. After failing at his phone and Aunt May's, she tried the girlfriend. "Where is he?"

"Who's this?"

"Penelope Morse. Where is he?"

The younger woman paused. "He just left; he's probably half way through the bridge" _Bridge. Awesome. Just awesome._ "I'll try to keep him out of trouble" Gwen was worried "Thank you"

By the time she reached the bridge, people were running away and most cars were trying reverse, causing pile-ups. And then a car just flew over the bridge. Yes, Bruce was definitely here.

And there was the little guy in red and blue, swinging over their heads. She wasn't gonna be late again. She was gonna save at least one of them. She put her hoodie up, running as fast as she could, jumping over cars, trying to put the pain in her arm out of her head. A pair of cops tried to stop her, but she waved a plaque at them and made a run for it. They had bigger issues than a crazy loonie, like hundreds of families and children out on a Sunday afternoon at the mercy of a giant angry green Hulk.

She kept on running to the middle of the bridge. _Why did it always come down to the bridge?! _Spiderman was throwing a sea of webs to Hulk to restrain him. Hulk looked smaller than the last time he was around New York on the loose, and he seemed more annoyed than angry, which was odd _**"Stop it kid!" **_ But Peter wouldn't, oh no. He couldn't just walk away from a fight with a bigger guy.

A little bit of hope hit Penny. Hulk wasn't Hulk-smashing Peter into a wall, or against the cars, or anything. Hulk was purposely missing. Peter wouldn't stand a chance against the angry green guy, even with his healing ability. "Spiderman, knock it off!"

Both Peter and Hulk stopped when they heard her voice. Hulk grunted and Peter misread it, why wouldn't he after all? "Get out of here. I'm fighting the green guy!" Penny run to them and saw 2 choppers flying over them. News crew, no Army yet.

But they'll get here soon enough, 5 minutes, 10 if they were lucky. Hulk threw another empty car in the general direction of Peter, cutting the web that was holding him up, but caught him mid air to lessen his fall. Peter was scared and confused at the gesture.

Penny smiled with the corner of her mouth and yelled at him "If you don't leave in 5, Ross will get here. Are you getting what I'm saying?" He nodded grabbing two more cars and making a lot of grunt noises, Peter once again hung from the webslings trying to kick the cars over the bridge, out of Hulk hands. The whole scene reminded her of King Kong.

_King Kong_. He was acting. _Bruce_ was acting this out. She had to do something, something. _Anything._

"Spiderman, Hulk, GUYS! KNOCK IT OFF BOTH OF YOU!" But they wouldn't, they were too busy throwing webslings and cars at one another and breaking things, starting with her patience. "Bruce you gotta go!"

They wouldn't stop and there wasn't enough time, for either of them. She saw the border of the bridge and had a _very_ stupid idea.

She yelled, given the best impersonation of a female in distress she could muster and tripped on her own feet towards the edge. Hulk started climbing down to catch her and Peter threw a sling at her, but she was holding herself with her good arm. "You know, your hand would be enough _Spiderman"_ Peter hurried to the bridge and pulled her up, while she looked at Hulk's eyes. Green with a tilt of brown, "Go" he dived into the water and that's the last they saw of Hulk.

Peter helped her to her feet just in time for the sirens of cops to start ringing and the Army to start flying over them. "Go under the bridge, change as fast as you can. Call me when you're safe." He nodded "Remember to act like you're scared Penn" and took off. Soon enough the first two cops came near her, guns in their hands.

"Miss, hands were we can see them"

She started sobbing and fell to her knees, "Sergeant, I can't raise my hands, my arm hurts like hell, I just fell off a bridge and Spidey saved me. I don't know what I was thinking, it was so scary" The old rounded cop lowered his gun and came closer to her, helping her up. "It must've been, but we still gotta take you in for questioning Miss" She wasn't selling this properly. _Clearly_. The younger cop wasn't so nice, he grabbed his handcuffs, "Turn around miss. You have the right to remain sil-"

"Officers, she's in our custody now" Fury's tone didn't leave room for questioning. "Director Fury. SHIELD. Agent, please" he gestured to one of his SWAT-suited men, who went towards her, locked the handcuffs around her wrists rather forcefully and started shoving her towards one of the vans.

She took a deep breath. She didn't know if this was an extraction (it sure looked like one) or if she had got in trouble. She was still with the handcuffs after all. Well, of course she was in trouble, she had left both Hulk and Spiderman escape. No, she had accidentally tripped and fell off a bridge. _Right._

She started banging her head against the wall, when the SWAT-suited guy in front of her made her stop. "Busted shoulder isn't enough for you?" She smiled at him while he took off his helmet and faceshield. He sat next to her and held her tight close to his chest. "How did you talk him into this?"

"I didn't, I knocked down one of his guys and took his place" She frowned puzzled. "What's going on Penn?"

"I- well, he needed a way out, so I, tripped and you know, made Spidey focus on something else and now Bruce's on the run"

"Hulk's on the run. And that's not what I mean"

"What did Fury say?"

"That you needed to tell me" She snorted very loudly "No he didn't. Good game though"

"So you're handling Spiderman too? Is he working for SHIELD now?" She sighed, last night seemed miles away "No, he isn't" but her tone stated something different. It was "not if I can help it". And with that, Steve confirmed a part of his suspicions.

"What's going on Penn?" she grabbed his faceshield "You need to put it back on, otherwise he'll know it's you" he threw it to the floor "I don't care." He looked at her intently "You really can't tell me, can you? What- what do they have on you? Why are you so scared of telling me?" She looked down.

She whispered to his ear "SHIELD vehicle, bugged there, there and there." She pointed at different places. "Can you get me off of these please? My arm really hurts and this isn't helping" he got the handcuffs off carefully and stroked her wrists, playing with the border of her bracelet. "Can't you dose yourself with that?"

"I need to debrief Fury" they were interlocking fingers again "Not the way I thought Sunday would go really" his attempt to changing the mood in the back of the van seemed to have brought her back to a happier place.

"Really? How did you want to spend your Sunday?"

"Well, I was thinking of a promising lunch date and then maybe watch a movie or the game on a couch while stroking a woman's arm slowly" he started doing just what his words describe "and maybe later steal a kiss from her, or twenty. Maybe dance, I don't know."

"I heard you were a good dancer, yes"

"You did?"

"Yup. Lucky girl" he caressed her cheek one last time before the van stopped. He was still holding her hand when Fury opened the door. He was the only person in the area.

"Agents, go to the infirmary, change and I'd like to see you in my office in 30 minutes." He didn't seem shocked to see Steve there or the fact that her hand was in his.

"And Rogers, next time just ask, I can't have another agent down because you left him unconscious"


	26. Chapter 26: Eye of the beholder

**Disclaimer: I don't own Avengers or The green hornet. Btw, I love Revenge also, see if you figure out what I'm talking about!**

**I'd love to hear what you have to say! Don't be shy!**

* * *

**Chapter 26: Eye of the beholder**

Dim light was coming through the large room windows. _Pang. Pang. Pang. _He could feel his strength failing him, his rib cage still bothering on occasion, the stitches on the back of his head still not healed. _Pang. Pang. Pang. _

Two days. 48 hours. He should be healed by now. His ribs should've stopped hurting long ago. He shouldn't get agitated running up the stairs. _Pang. Pang. Pang. _

Two days. Still no sign of the Hulk. _Pang. Pang. Pang. _He really wanted to believe Penny when she said that Bruce had got it right. Take a leap of faith and trust her guts. He really did, still the Bridge was partially a wreck and hundreds of cars were destroyed. _Pang. Pang. Pang. _

Though there had been no casualties, only minor bruises here and there. Two broken arms. A minor concussion when someone knocked someone else away from Hulk's way. "No casualties. He avoided crowded streets, he went straight for the bridge because it'd be a display and he could swim away!" _Pang. Pang. Pang. _That had been his second fight with Penny. The first since they had started… dating? Making out? Being partners? _Pang. Pang. Pang._

Bruce was gone, somewhere up North. His gamma radiation was being shielded somehow and no one in the building could find him. That was a good thing he thought. _If our geeks can't find him, the Army won't either_. That gave Bruce some time. Steve had promised him they'd find him before Ross did. _Pang. Pang. Pang._

Ross. How could such an asshole have such a kind and endearing daughter? She was sweet mannered, broad smile and undying love for his friend. _Pang. Pang. Pang._

The moment Betty reached SHIELD HQ she started working on the sample Bruce had forgotten at the office. "Of course he didn't forget it, he left it for us to find. He left it on the far side of his office, safe from harm!" Penny's wishful thinking was borderline denial. She had her back bruised, she couldn't perform surgeries for at least 4 weeks but she was still sure her friend hadn't gone in a crazy rampage. _Pang. Pang. Pang. _

"Can I have a go at it?" He held the punching bag and turned around slowly smiling at her. "Sure, but can you handle it?" She had her hands wrapped ready to start hitting it, but he got between her and the bag "Oh no you're not missy"

"Excuse me?" she crossed her arms over her chest. "You need to rest your arm, 4 weeks at least" She raised her eyebrow. "I don't think so."

He got closer to her "You know you shouldn't, you're probably on painkillers"

"I can't really take many of those, so no. Just sheer pure will" she was smirking at him, staring deeply at his eyes. He cleared his throat "Brandon, kill the cams"

"Right away Sir. Done" he cupped her face with his hands and kissed her softly. She kissed him back, slowly caressing his back. His kisses became deeper and more rushed when her hands moved under his shirt. He brought her closer to him and gave her a little kiss on the tip of her nose. "Someone missed me last night"

He gave her another little kiss, this time in the forehead and let go of her. "Always" She came closer to the punching bag and held her from behind "C'mon Penn, you can't"

"I still need to train with my right arm, and bad guys won't stop hitting me because I had a dislocated shoulder" but he wouldn't move and wouldn't let her near the bag. "Rogers, c'mon"

"Nope" she lifted her eyebrow in a menacing way and he giggled. _That_ was his first mistake.

In a second she had her ankle locked on his knee, pushed him to the floor and straddled him, looking triumphant. "You know I just let you do that, right?" He brought her closer to him "Sure you did" and in a swift move his body was on top of hers, his hand tracing lines on her skin slowly, moving from her waist through her ribs. She liked this new feeling of his hands on her skin sending shivers all through her; he enjoyed feeling how she trembled under him.

But it was too much too soon. He had to stop. But how could he when her nails were now tracing on his back and she was nibbling his lower lip? His shirt was half way out and he had found a soft spot under her earlobe that made her particularly agitated. This felt so good, so _very_ good.

But it _was_ a training room in SHIELD HQ. And they had kissed for the first time only 3 days ago. And yes, he wanted this, god he _needed _to feel her, to kiss every inch of her, to love her… But not now, not like this. He wanted it to be special, not in a rush move on the training floor.

And then he saw her again with her flushed cheeks… Her skin was so soft… His shirt was somehow on the floor and she was again on top of him. He started running his fingers through uncharted territories in her back when he felt a scar, two scars, three… He stopped kissing her neck and looked at her without removing his hand from her back "Lviv. Long story" she rushed a kiss on his lips trying to change the subject. "Pen, wait, I- we can't do this like this"

"Do what? We're just"- and now he blushed thinking he was assuming the wrong thing. She half smiled clearing her throat but keeping her hands on him "Yeah, I guess we're getting more carried away by the minute right?"

"We _are _on a training room during lunch break. We shouldn't"- she nodded but didn't move from her straddled position on top of him, and he didn't stop caressing her back slowly "I'm seeing that storage Stark mentioned I could borrow today, wanna tag along?"

She smiled "I'd love to" and he smiled back kissing her fully on the lips, bringing her closer to him again.

Not asking Brandon to lock the room door was _his second mistake._

"Am I interrupting second base? _Please don't stop on_ _my account_" Steve practically jumped away from her when he heard the stranger's purry voice. Penny half smiled at the guy at the door "Hello, we were training. I thought the door was locked"

"_Clearly"_ the smug look on the stranger's face was getting on Steve's nerves. "And you are?" Penny grabbed Steve by the hand while he was getting his shirt and walked towards the man standing at the door. "Steve Rogers, this is Phil Stan, Brandon's maker." The men shook hands, "I thought you were in Whitehall by now"

"Had to wrap up a few things here and there. Do you have the samples I left during the weekend?" She looked puzzled "Didn't you hear that Bruce snapped into Hulk right next to my office?" The dark blond man seemed to ponder for a minute "Yes, well, he didn't pass out. He would've passed out if the pen was broken. I need it. I'm trading gadgets with MI6, among other things"

Penny smirked and seemed to have forgotten they were in one of the most used floors of the building because she wasn't letting go of Steve's hand "Oh, you mean you want to show to young Q your exploding pen? _Pun intended"_ Steve couldn't help feeling a little shiver when he heard her purring voice, even if it was meant to be a mock towards some other guy. "Touché" Stan looked to Steve with the corner of his eye "Dark looking geek from MI6, Q is like a _Handler"_

"Hopefully he'll accept to handle you Stanny" she giggled while getting into the elevator and pressing the 10th. "You will water my plants and take care of Kato right?" Penny rolled her eyes annoyed, "I told you I would already" she paused and looked mischievous for a second, "Do I get the Black Beauty too?" Stan took a deep breath "Okay. But no parking with your boyfriend anywhere. I want it on pristine condition when I get it back Missy" and just like that he handed over the keys of his most precious possession.

Penny was shocked. And no, it wasn't about the clear _"don't have sex in my car" _implications, it wasn't even about calling Steve _boyfriend_. "You're letting me have your car?" She stopped the elevator, while Steve asked Brandon to make sure they were radio silenced, he figured she wouldn't want anyone listening, probably not even him.

"You never lend me your car. _Ever._ You've had that car for 8 years and _never_ lend it to me. What's going on Stan?" It wasn't a question. It was a demand. Stan took a deep breath and looked at Steve and then back at her. "I'm not sure Nellie"

"Mutants? Mr. O? Lakin?" Stan's expression changed from worried to sad when she said that last name. It took Steve a second to remember it. _Alexander Lakin. _Russian mobster, head of the organization she had infiltrated years ago, ultimate responsible for her imprisonment. They never managed to get enough evidence to convict him and his last known location was a non-extradition country.

"All I know is that _Señor Furioso_ wants me out of here" Steve realized that the guy was a terrible liar. When they reached the 10th he decided to give them some space and went to talk to Betty Ross.

"Lakin's making a move _here_, not in England" –"I know Nellie, but Fury wants me to go, what can I do? Please be safe okay? I'll be too far to do anything" she nodded. "I guess it's time to poke my frenemy into action"

Stan nodded, "I gotta run. I left your Halloween costume in the trunk." She frowned confused and he winked. "I'm sure it'll look great on you under the moonlight _Mocky_" he kissed her on the cheek and she held him close "You are coming back soon right? Thanksgiving remember?"

"I wouldn't miss it Nellie" he looked towards the office in the back and saw Steve with his arms crossed over his chest "Take care of her Cap" Steve nodded at him and Stan got into the elevator.

The doors closed behind him and she couldn't shake the feeling of goodbye. She walked into the office and met Steve's eyes, trying to hide his hundreds of questions. She had to tell him everything. _Every single thing._ But he'd hate her for lying, for keeping those things from him. He would, she was sure of it.

And she'd lose him too. She was getting tired of losing people.

_One more day, just one more day._

* * *

The Conference room seemed bigger with so little people in it. Hoban was giving the team the latest updates on his Extremis research. Only 2% of the world population could successfully take the nanotechnology and live to see another day.

As it turned out, Tony was one lucky bastard. But they all knew that already.

"All the more reason to find Mandarin sooner Stark, we're running out of time" Barton's face in the video feed looked tired, clenching his teeth. His new partner was probably getting on his nerves. He clearly missed Natasha and she missed him by the looks of both.

Stark was stunned. He wanted to believe that Maya was still a prisoner, but everything was pointing against her. Still, he wouldn't admit it to them, _no fucking way_. He needed a drink.

"We burnt down the house, and before you ask, we took samples for you docs" Fury crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Did you find anything actionable?"

Major Danvers decided to speak, for some reason she was all smiles towards everyone. Bad day to be the newbie on this team "We found strong indicators of another base, near the Lviv border. We'll be heading that way as soon as you clear us for it Sir"

When they heard _Lviv, _Penny's eyes moved from Romanoff to Barton, and stayed staring at her ex husband. It was hard to swallow all of the sudden. Barton nodded at her, everything was coming full circle. Bad things always come in threes. Shit.

Steve's hand found hers under the table and that calmed her down a bit. She needed to talk to Romanoff, they needed to smoke Lakin out of his rat hole. Somehow, he was related to all of this. No one sets an operation in Lviv without his blessing. Not even Mandarin.

Fury cleared them for duty and kept bantering with Stark while Barton kept staring alternatively at Penny and Natasha. It was getting hard to breath there. Steve decided to speak, without letting go of her hand under the table "I hate to be the one bringing this on the table but"- he looked at Stark,

"Maya is in on it? Is that what you're gonna say?"

"No, but it's nice to hear you accepting the possibility. No, are you sure they're gonna be there? What if he's planning to attack somewhere else? You're on the other side of the world, and the EU leaders meeting is taking place next week. Maybe this is a diversion"

Fury disregarded Steve, "We have the EU meeting covered. MI6 is helping and we've sent key team members from our staff" Penny gritted her teeth. Stan better made it back.

"Well, do MI6 agents have a vaccine against Extremis sir? Do EU leaders?" Fury didn't like Hoban's tone. "No Doctor, they don't"

"Can we cancel it Sir?" Steve knew Fury would say no. "You expect me to warn the World Security Council and force them to cancel the meetings of World Leaders? That's just one meeting. Mandarin could strike anywhere now" Romanoff spoke "He'll strike soon enough, must be getting restless by now. We'll need to do damage control."

"Precisely agent Romanoff. Stark, you'll be running point on acquiring Mandarin, along with Barton and Danvers. Try _not_ to break much civilian property" He kept talking, without leaving Tony time to respond "Doctor Hoban, you'll run point on a cure. _Get us a cure_." He wasn't asking, he was telling. Hoban nodded.

"Dr. Ross, I understand that you're concerned about Dr. Banner, but we need your help with this" Betty sighed and agreed, she understood how bad it was. She wasn't getting much sleep anyway so she figured she could work on Extremis and Bruce's work at the same time. "Agent Romanoff will be running point on disaster recovery, if it were to happen" before Penny could retort about Natasha not being fit for duty, Fury continued "You're not cleared for active duty agent. Desk only duties" Natasha nodded clenching her teeth. "Rogers and Dr. Morse will help with the cure and disaster recovery"

Fury looked at Penny. He couldn't ignore the elephant in the room for much longer. "I've been informed by the Tech Team that Dr. Banner's gamma radiation is not being picked anywhere in the globe" He stood still in front of the screen, staring intently at Stark "You don't happen to know how's that possible, do you Mr. Stark?"

"Maybe Bruce found a way to replicate his own signal in all the satellites making it useless. That's what I would've done" Fury turned around and exchanged looks with Penny. "He got rid of the GPS the moment he left the building, can't track him with that either"

Fury started talking again, walking around the room, without looking at anyone in particular "Do you realize that if General Ross finds Dr. Banner before we do it would _not_ be beneficial for him?"

Steve decided to speak "I don't believe anyone in this room or in _that_ room would want that, Sir. We'll find him. He left for a reason; we just need to figure out what the reason was."

"And then we'll find where he's going and intercept him before General Ross does" Penny finished his line brushing Betty's arm. "We _will_ find him before the Army does"

"And if you don't? What if you find him at the same time? What if my dad gets him before you do?" Fury's hands were over Betty's chair. Steve looked straight into Fury's eyes "We rescue him. We leave no man behind"

"You mean to say you're willing to break into an Army facility in order to break out a highly dangerous asset from it?"

Penny's voice raised slightly, apparently there was only so much she could take "He's not an _asset_. He's our friend, he's her boyfriend. He's not dangerous anymore, didn't you see the feeds?"

"You mean the feed where you're hanging from a Bridge and giving both him and Spiderman a chance to run?"

"Ross was getting here and they wouldn't stop fighting, I produced a diversion" She paused "We'll get to Bruce before General Ross does. As Steve said he's going _somewhere_, this wasn't random."

"How can you be so sure? You saw the cars thrown over the bridge, damn it, you were _right there_ Barbara!" before she could answer, Steve's hand on her leg made her stop. He talked, "Because he's not _just_ Hulk Sir, he's also Bruce" Both Penny and Betty looked at him perplexed while he walked to the screens. Betty had been witness of their argument about Bruce being himself or not on the bridge and she was under the impression that Steve didn't agree with Penny at all.

Steve brought up the video and froze the image on Hulk's face "His eyes are light brown" He stood there, waiting for the reality of his statement to hit everyone. "Bruce's eyes _are_ brown Captain. What"-

Stark interrupted finally getting what Rogers meant "Hulk always has green eyes, Bruce's eyes turn green even when he's a little angry, does that mean that"-

"Whatever he did, it worked. He knows what he's doing" Steve came back to his seat and now her hand was caressing his slowly under the table. She looked at him and said a voiceless _Thank you_.

Steve squeezed her hand and smiled with the corner of his mouth, taking a deep breath. _I just hope we find him in time._


	27. Chapter 27: The right partner

**Disclaimer: I don't own Avengers or The green hornet. **

**I've been waiting a looong time to finally get to this chapter and the next. Hopefully you won't be disappointed!**

**Chapter 27: The right partner**

Romanoff was lying in the stretcher while Penny checked her scaring tissue and removed the stitches. They had reached some sort of understanding in the aftermath of the surgery and the procedure was going quiet and smoothly enough, with no slashing one another with quick retorts.

"You're all set Romanoff. Remember to take the painkillers for a few more days. And see Dr. Stevens alright?" Natasha nodded and gave her a piercing look. "I'll see you tomorrow at 10 Dr. Morse" Penny nodded. Disasterrecovery meeting, with _Romanoff_ running point, Fury had a weird sense of humor.

"Natasha, wait" she closed the door and turned around to face her surgeon. "Yes Dr. Morse?" the doctor looked at her "Are you having problems with me running point? I _am _one of the finest agents in this place." Penny crossed her arms over her chest in a Steve Rogers way.

"Wow, you're already copying his body language. I wonder who's handling who in your _partnership_" Of course she knew that Penny had replaced her as Steve's handler. "I liked the _Meet Peggy Carter _addition you made to his plan. It has charm" Penny gritted her teeth "Lakin is backing up Mandarin"

"I picked on that, yes."

"Aren't you worried?"

"Why would I?"

"Because he's here" Natasha's flushed cheeks suddenly went pale. "He'd never leave Europe" Penny handed over pictures and passenger's lists. The pictures showed a tall man with grey hair and broad shoulders going through airport gates, taking coffee, meeting with other people… Natasha rushed through the list and spotted a name that was familiar to both of them. "That's right; he used the name of that psychotic asshole to leave the country. There are no traces of him getting in, but that was taken in Washington, that other in Virginia, this one in Jersey…"

"Did you tell Fury?" Penny sighed "What am I supposed to tell him? That a resounding business man is in the US? I have no evidence linking him to _anything_ Natasha. And technically he didn't enter US soil"

"So you remember" Natasha's heart was pounding, "Every gory detail" she gave the pictures back "And why didn't you tell him anything?"

Penny chuckled. "I thought about it. Tons of times. I do remember enough for Clint to hate you for the rest of your life and I wouldn't hesitate on using it." She sighed "But what would be the point? No one would get a happy ending and you got a sweet new life here, you've proven a good asset for SHIELD and I know that you love Clint unconditionally. I've seen the way you look at each other… _Love is for children my ass._ I'm not taking that away from him"

"Back in Lviv I didn't do… I"- Penny stopped her "I also know, well, not know but, I'm pretty sure that it was you the one who made the anonymous call tipping them on my location. So I do owe you my life, not just because you pulled Lincoln away from me that last day, but for everything. And I don't forget my debts"

"You saved mine in the OR. I should've listened to you before, I just…" Penny smiled with the corner of her mouth "Couldn't admit to yourself that you would mind having his children so much anymore?" Natasha looked at Penny one last time "So, what's the plan?"

Penny half smiled "Oh well, we'll get to that eventually. I"- Steve was at the door with a bag and some canvas. Penny smiled at him and took the pictures from Natasha. "I gotta go, see you tomorrow Romanoff" Penny was about to open the door "Rogers' a good man Morse, don't fuck him up"

Penny couldn't help wanting to retort to her comment. Romanoff, _Black widow_, former assassin that lured men to her bed, get their secrets and then slaughter them, telling her what to do with Steve. To Steve, of all people! Someone that had got under Penny's skin against her better judgment, someone that made her feel that life could actually be good after all, with him by her side. Of course she didn't want to fuck him up! She wanted to be with him forever for God's sake!

_Wow. When did that happen? How did that happen? _

Penny looked at Natasha trying to remove that sudden realization from her face and did what she did best with her frenemy "I won't. And the same goes for you and Clint. Hurt him and I swear to God Romanoff, you'll wish you'd kill me on Lviv" Natasha half smiled "Now that's more like us, I was starting to worry thinking we were buddies or something"

And just like that, they laughed together, for the first time of their lives.

* * *

The Black Beauty was polished and it's alarm ringed slowly when she clicked to disable it. The lights went white-green-white and she couldn't help giggle. They came nearer the car and Penny showed Steve the little hornet on the front and how the tires were vintage and how during weekends Stanny had turned the car into the _actual _Black Beauty, heavy guns and all. "He has permits of course"

He put his big bag in the back seat, along with the canvas and a small box with oil paintings. She asked him to be extremely careful with the leathery seats. "He'll kick my ass if it gets stained Steve" he headed to the passenger's seat when she remembered the _Halloween costume_.

She opened the truck and saw a big shopping box. When she opened it, her old suit was there. Kevlar reinforcements, utility belt, small white lines on the sides and big yellow pilot goggles that'd cover half of her face. "Nice shades" she was startled by Steve's voice on her side.

"Halloween costume" He came closer to it and touched the fabric "Lots of bullets in Halloween parties I take it?" she left the goggles in the trunk and shut it down rather forcefully.

"We're partners you know. I think we're supposed to _share_ intel." She got to the driver's seat and buckled up while he got in the car "He just wants me to be safe while he's gone"

"He always has your back, doesn't he?"

"Do I detect irony in your tone Captain Rogers?" he chuckled "None at all agent Morse. So he's obsessed with the Green Hornet, just like you are"

"Yes…"

"And he makes you sexy Kevlar costumes…"

"Sexy?"

"Well, I hadn't seen it on you yet, but I guess that much. Actually, I don't recall ever seeing you dressed up as an agent. Not live anyway"

"Right, my file" she sighed "You saw me once. I just didn't make a lasting impression back then. You had bigger issues, like breaking into the guns compartment and making Bruce snap and banter with Stark"-

"Got it, got it. So you were there?"

"Yup, you passed me on the hall while heading for the guns. I followed you"

"You did? Why?"

"I always liked getting in trouble" she gave him a playful look "And you most definitely looked like you were about to get in trouble. Didn't you find it weird that no alarm rang when you forced the door?" He had thought back then that once passed the security clearance the room wouldn't have alarms. That's how federal buildings worked most of the time anyway. "Why did you?"

"Why wouldn't I?" Steve looked at her "Is that why you were suspended? Because you helped me?" She snorted "Nope, I did a bunch of other things, went for Loki's throat. He almost didn't make it back to Asgard, that asshole" Suddenly she was driving way too fast. Steve brushed her arm slowly to soothe her. It worked, "Because of what he did to Clint?"

"Because of what he did to Phil" Steve took a deep breath while she adjusted the rearview mirror. "So Stan is my sidekick, since… gosh, always. He likes to think he's Britt Reid and I'm Kato, but not a chance"

He looked at her "Were you ever an item?" She took a moment to answer, "Nah, not _really_. We were both outcasts back in college and we became family you know."

"So you never…" he made a pause, he still had issues expressing himself in this century "Had sex?" He was slightly blushing "No, we never did. When I was 17 we sort of kissed once, but it was too weird. He wasn't sure what he liked, so" Steve nodded "He's gay then?"

"He goes both ways" she suddenly remembered something "So you and your grandma… what's the story there?"

"My grandma?" He looked at her baffled "That blond woman that supposedly carried your child or whatever, the secretary"

"She was a secretary. I had never got that kind of attention before… One moment she was asking if it was me on the paper, the next her tongue was in my mouth"

"Oh, don't make it sound like it was disgusting, I bet it wasn't" he cleared his throat "So Peggy found out?"

"Oh yes... She saw us and basically shot me 5 times. Howard and I were testing the shield thankfully" Penny giggled "She sounds awesome"

"She was" Penny swallowed and was afraid of looking at him again. "She still is. You need to see her. It's part of your adjustment"

"I can't believe you added that and didn't tell me"

"Well, you didn't read the last draft, it's hardly _my_ fault"

"I don't want to see her. I… She had a full life, I don't want to bring regrets in her life Penn" He started looking through the window. She understood where he was coming from; still, he _had to _talk to her. She needed him to talk to Peggy. Fast. "I understand Steve, but she lived your life. If someone can- if someone can help you come to terms with the last 70 years, that's her"

Steve kept quiet the rest of the ride. Once they stopped at the ribs restaurant he grabbed her hand before she got off the car. He cupped her face with his other hand "You help me, that's all I need. _You _are all that I need" she smiled sadly, "Steve I" he kissed her again while caressing her cheek slowly with his thumb.

"Let's get the ribs to go and eat in the new place, okay?" Penny nodded, still smiling sadly.

* * *

"The restaurant will be closed for the weekend and Gwen has this Osborn conference in Virginia and asked me to tag along" Penny was waiting to hear what the problem was. _Nothing. _

"Oh poor you, having to stay in a Bed and Breakfast in Virginia with your hot girlfriend, all expenses paid" Peter scowled at his friend while Steve went to the back to check the jukebox "I don't think he likes me much" Penny rolled her eyes "So, what's the problem with the trip? Besides the fact that Osborn is a disgusting little man"

"He's a genius, and his son is my friend Penny"

"He's also" she looked around "Just watch it around him okay? He's not good news. Don't trust everything that shines" Peter was incredibly nervous playing with something in his pocket. "Speaking of things that shine…" he took a little black box and offered it to Penny.

Inside, a beautiful ring was standing. Aunt Mae's wedding ring. Steve came closer to them "That's one nice ring son, planned what you'll tell the lucky lady?"

"No idea" Peter sighed "I'm probably gonna trip and stutter and just leave it on her pillow for her to find" Penny chuckled a "Chicken" and took a step back to talk to Mirna, leaving the guys talking since they seemed to be finally hitting it off. Made sense knowing where they both came from and how they always chose to do the right thing because it was the right thing to do.

Mirna was handing over the bags to Penny "Here's your order little lady" when a sturdy man came through the front and started talking to Mirna without giving a second glance at Penny. He had a strong German accent and was packing a 9mm under his big shirt. She nodded at the man and thanked Mirna and then headed to where Peter and Steve were chatting.

"Hey kid, finish your break outside!" Mirna wasn't being polite, which was unlike her. While they were walking to the door, Steve picked on the man's words in German and eyed Penny, who seemed suddenly too aware of her surroundings. Once they reached the yard Penny talked "Pete, does that guy come here often?"

"You mean Chuck? He's a regular. Bit rude but big tipper. I think he has a crush on Mirna" Steve sighed and Penny decided to talk again "Pete, we're"-

"You're dating. I got it, happy for you guys" Penny shook her head "What? No, that's not." Steve frowned slightly at her negativity "We're in the middle of a big thing at work. Something bad may happen soon and well, we don't know where it could hit. If you go to this Osborn thing, just check for exits first and at the first sign of something weird, you get Gwen and you out of there"

"But I could"- Penny gritted her teeth, "You get Gwen and yourself out of there. And call you call me, understood?"

"No, not understood. Stop giving me orders! I can take care of myself and her!" Steve decided to interrupt "Son, a crazy man is playing with biological threats. We don't know where he'll hit and only a handful of the population will be unharmed when he does. If you see something odd in this convention, call us. Then go to a bathroom, set some napkins on fire without being seen and ring a fire alarm. That'll empty the building. Don't come back in. If you do, it could kill you" Peter was serious and nodded.

Penny looked at Steve surprised. "I will Steve, thanks. Wish me luck with this" he pocketed the ring again and smiled at them while walking back into the restaurant.

Penny stood on dry looking at Steve. "What?" she kept on staring at him "Why did you do that?" Steve came closer to her and put his arms around her "You trust him." He sighed "And if he's old enough to ask his girlfriend to marry him, well, he's old enough to know what's at stake"

"Confidential information to a civilian? That's unlike you" Steve's hand run through her back and reached the curve of her neck "I guess you're a bad influence Dr. Morse" They shared a smile and as they started kissing, rain started falling on them, but neither of them cared to move.

* * *

By the time they reached the storage place the car seats were as soaked as they were. He got off the car and opened the large door while she entered the Black Beauty to what seemed to be an incredibly tall cellar room. Once they locked it, they went through a smaller archway. Steve turned on the light and saw that the place looked like a spacious loft. High ceilings, lots of walls, couple of windows on the top, integrated kitchen with a small island and a small wood-burning stove on the corner, with a pile of wood right next to it.

"Now this looks nice. I think even the bike could fit in this place" she was following him slowly, carrying the food bag, trying not to tremble much. She was soaked and it was winter and this place was incredibly cold.

He kept walking slowly through the living room towards the kitchen and she dropped the food in there. He went through yet another small archway and found a bathroom and a small bedroom. Penny found a note on top of the island, with Stark's logo on the top left.

"_Steve,_

_I hope you find the place to your liking. You'll find new sheets and towels on the cabinet next to the bathroom. I took the liberty to leave some basics in the fridge and the cabinets next to it. Kind regards, _

_Pepper Potts" _

Steve came back from the rooms still carrying his bag and box of paintings. "This place is… amazing"

"And Stark's girlfriend _personally_ stocked up your fridge. Why aren't I friends with this guy? Not cool" She sneezed and he realized that she was as soaked as he was, only he was too excited about the place to care. He reached for a towel in the cabinet and handed it over. She whispered a quiet thanks and then told him they should heat up the food.

After 5 minutes, she was still sneezing and his damp shirt was starting to bother him "I'm so stupid" Penny lifted her eyebrow at him, while he reached for his bag. "Here, change your clothes. You can get a warm bath too if you'd like while I heat this up"

She automatically reached for the shirt and pants he was offering and then she saw the stamp on it. _Strategic Scientific Reserve_. She looked up and gave it back. "It's late, I should- I should get going. I forgot I need to check on Kato"

"What is it Penny?" She took a deep breath and looked at him with her sad eyes "I can't do this anymore" She was holding the tears inside and he was suddenly defensive "I've been keeping things from you. I was supposed to keep them from you and then I just… I didn't want to tell you cos you would- you would hate me for keeping it from you. I can't stay. I'm sorry"

Steve cleared his throat but didn't move while she started walking towards the car. "I know most of what you've kept from me and I'm still here" She sighed "Sure you do" he came closer to her, his voice rising with every word "I know who Spidey is. And I know you've been helping him and not just with his college applications." She took a deep breath "I know that you want Bruce to be okay and that you feel guilty for bringing Betty because you think that just rushed his decision" she stood still "I'm also pretty sure you never stopped being an active agent. Which probably means that we were your assignment, isn't that right?" She turned around, eyes reddened.

"I also know that you put that formula together to save just one guy. A guy that's supposed to be long gone" she looked at him ashamed, "and I know you think I'm dying. You're probably right about that one though"

"It's not, that's not" Hundreds of thoughts were running through her head. He didn't look _that_ mad. "I'm still… You're right about me being active, but no one other than Fury should know that. There's… someone trying to overthrown Nick and there's no one else he can trust. He and I… we go way back" He nodded "So you and him…" She frowned looking disgusted "God No! He's like my older brother Steve, that's all!" He kept staring at her with sad eyes "There a few other things you hadn't figured out yet"

He stared right into her eyes, not realizing he was brushing her arms slowly. There was only one thing he _needed_ to know, the one thing that had been in the back of his head holding him back, the rest could wait. "Am I just your asset then? Is this some sort of game? Is that why you were pushing me away before? Because you wanted to spare me the heartbreak when I found out it was all a lie?" His voice broke and he was quite upset. That look she never wanted to see in his eyes was staring right at her.

She run her fingers through his lips "It's not an act, not at all" she lingered in front of him "I didn't want you to have feelings for me because I'm packed with lies and you deserve someone much better than that. Goodbye Steve" She gave him a small kiss in the corner of his mouth and started to walk away.

"Stay"

She stood still and she slowly felt his warmth behind her, as his arms surrounded her slowly. He kissed the top of her head, then her ear, moving little by little to her neck. She turned around slowly and they kissed fully on their smiley lips, not holding anything back.

He smiled at her while kissing the tip of her nose and then let go to put some wood on the stove. He went back to his bag and grabbed the clothes for her. When he turned around she was near the stove, firelight lighting her face. She looked so calmed and beautiful, just like when they were dancing. For the first time since the day he had woken up in SHIELD, being frozen for 70 years made sense. _He had been waiting for the right partner_.

He dropped the clothes back on the bag and turned off the roof lights. He could see her smiling with the corner of her mouth. She was going to say something, but he stopped her bringing her closer to him. They didn't need words anymore, not tonight.


	28. Chapter 28: Hope

**Disclaimer: I don't own Avengers or The green hornet. **

**Hi readers! I'm sorry for the long wait. Even though I know exactly how this ends, I've hit a roadblock and I wasn't quite sure on how to get there. So, be warned!**

**Thanks for staying around and let me know what you think! =)**

* * *

**Chapter 28: Hope**

The loud thunder near the window woke him up with a startle. There seemed to be too much light coming through the window, it was probably morning already. It took him a moment to remember where he was. His house, his new house.

As he opened his eyes turning around towards the window he realized there was someone fidgeting next to him in bed. Someone warm that was reaching for his arm half asleep, saying she was cold.

Her hair was messed up, spread through the pillows. He cuddled with her, covering them up to their necks and put his arm around her waist. She locked fingers with him and started breathing more evenly.

Waking up next to her, feeling her so close felt incredible. Suddenly it all made sense and nothing else really mattered anymore. He breathed her in and gave her a little peck on the nape, causing her to sigh. He kissed her neck again and again, unlocking his fingers and running them over her skin. She turned around smiling, but with her eyes still closed and set herself on the now familiar spot of his neck. "Good morning Mr. Rogers"

Her skin was warm, too warm. "Good morning Dr. Morse. How are you feeling today?" she gave him a little kiss on the neck, and then another a bit higher while running her fingers through his chest hair. "I'm fine"

"I think you have a fever Penn" he said while cupping her face with his hand. Somehow she was now leaning on top of him, holding on to the sheets and cover. "I do not. You just get me all sizzling" he bit his lower lip beaming at her and then reached for hers, rolling in bed and getting on top of her without breaking their kiss.

Of course, a phone rang then. "When- when did we even get the phones here?" he ignored her question and kept kissing her neck now, his hands everywhere. But the phone wouldn't stop ringing, so she grabbed him by the hair "Ouch! What?!" She lifted her eyebrow "Phone's ringing, it's daylight, we gotta go to work"

He pondered for a moment and then zoomed back to her mouth "Later" she quieted a giggle between their kiss "Could be an emergency" her husky tone between moans wasn't at all convincing. Steve kept kissing her, realizing that her skin was too warm "It's not. If it were someone would-" they heard a doorbell ring.

He rushed out of the bed searching for his trousers, while she kept the sheet around her and followed him "Next to the sofa" he turned around and saw her flushed cheeks and swallowed lips. The doorbell rang again "Coming!" he looked at her and gave her a little kiss on her lips "I could get used to this you know"

She smiled and gave him a kiss "Me too". As he walked towards the living room/kitchen, she stayed in the bedroom, looking for her own clothes and the phone that kept buzzing. It was hers.

"Stanny, what's up?" Stan's tone sounded clogged "Got a cold, I've been here for 20 hours and I already have a cold. Can you believe that? How's Kato? And the beauty?"

She sighed "They're fine" she paused "What you mean 20 hours?" she heard voices on the living room and decided to lower her tone. "Ellie, you sure that Banner broke everything up?" Great, her shirt was there!

"What you mean? Yeah, I mean, there was your pen and my drive, nothing else" And her panties too. _And my pants, good, pants are good, because I'm frakking freezing here._

"What's going on Stanny?" He paused again. "You need to see this, I'm sending you to your Pad"

"You sure that's safe?" she threw the sheet back in the bed and started making it up a bit while holding the phone with her shoulder. "It's in the cloud, untraceable. Who do you think I am?" She was gonna come out of the room, but Steve was clearly with someone else. "I can't reach my pad now. Can't you tell me?"

"Why are you whispering? What's going on Ellie?" She blushed, even though Stanny couldn't see her. "I'm not whispering. Why are you calling anyway Phillip!?"

"The heart rate monitor that was supposed to be destroyed was turned on 2 hours ago, and it's sending a signal, loud and clear, near Prince Edward Island. That" the door burst opened then and Steve came rushing "We have a hit on Bruce, we gotta go" he was beaming and was taken aback by her lack of surprise. And the phone in her ear "How?"

"A camera spotted Bruce, not Hulk. But we need to run, the Army's probably on its way"

"Stan I'll call you back" as she hung up she could hear his friend's purry voice making comments. Steve crossed his arms over his chest. She rolled her eyes at his gesture and went past him grabbing him from his t-shirt.

She shoved the pad to him with the GPS tracker map on. "I told you Bruce knew what he was doing" he smirked "He took Stan's heart rate monitor knowing it'd have a GPS. He wanted us to find him, see? Now we just need"- "to rush to the office, borrow a Quinjet and get there before anyone else"

She smiled reaching up to press a kiss on his lips, but they met half way "And you need an aspirin, you do have a fever" she cleared her throat " Yes sir"

They kissed one last time as they headed towards the Black beauty. They had a Dr. Banner to rescue.

* * *

Going into that store was a mistake, but he needed to eat something and he couldn't remember when was the last time he had eaten anything half decent.

He'd have to strip, put everything back in his bag, shift, focus on grabbing the bag, run. It was the only way he'd make it on time before the Army showed up.

_**We're not gonna get him. We need to get him.**_

_Shit shit shit shit. I know. Let's do this. _

He finished the peanut butter sandwich and drank as much water as he could. He was cold. He wouldn't feel the cold so much once he turned, it wasn't so bad. He started taking off his coat and his t-shirt and folded it neatly in the Stark backpack he had picked at that storage room Tony owned. _**You're folding? We have no time for folding! **_

He took off his shoes and put them in a bag. _Stop bugging, I can't look like a rat if we need to blend in when we come back home. _Whenhe put them in the backpack, he found the heart rate monitor. He wasn't going to turn it on until he was ready. He wasn't ready. He was far from it.

They could show up before the right time and they wouldn't let him go through it. _Shit. Shit. Shit. _But the camera picked on him. If that camera was replicated, as he knewit would be, then, he had little to no time left to act. His chances were better if they were around.

_They won't let Ross take me. Take us, we'll be safe with them._He turned it on. Hulk's voice has been sounding different since he took the shots, but this time it had a worried concern. _**They won't be. Ross would kill them if they get in his way.**_

_We won't let him. We'll do what we gotta do and then we go home. __**Home. Good.**_


End file.
